Tempest Fury
by Lady Black Mage
Summary: When a new mutant from Germany is brought to the Institute, will Nightcrawler be able to make friends with him? Or will this new mutant bring more bad changes than good...? WARNING! Contains: Language, violence, OCs, and mild OCxCanon.
1. Chapter 1: New Arrival

A/N: I don't own X-Men Evolution or any of its characters. But Arial Lavig and his family and history are mind. R&R is appreciated.

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><p><span>Chapter 1: New Arrival<span>

A handful of hours had passed since nightfall, the early spring air outside still cool with the memory of winter, but the fire burning in the hearth warmed the room like a mother's worried embrace. Charles Xavier stared quietly into the dancing flames, elbows resting on the arms of his wheelchair as he steepled his fingers in thought. He had been waiting for a little while now, to the point he was beginning to worry over Logan's long absence. After all, even if Logan was bringing back the new mutant Cerebro had detected, there was still a chance of danger for them both. Magneto, Sabretooth, Mystique, the Brotherhood of Mutants…all had been quiet of late, and it boded ill.

"You shouldn't worry so much," a deep feminine voice said gently, "They'll be here soon."

Xavier glanced over to one of his long-standing friends, offering her a worried look. Ororo Munroe's stark white hair seemed to be on fire from the natural light, and it added an eerie feel to her appearance as it framed her mocha-skinned face.

"Logan will be alright. You should have more faith after all this time, Charles."

He sighed. "I know, Ororo. But that doesn't mean I can just dismiss my feelings of concern. Any number of things could happen—"

"At any given point in time," she finished, having heard this argument before. "To any of us. It doesn't matter if it's tonight or five years from now. Anything could happen at any time. But you have to leave a little to trust and faith."

"That doesn't mean I will not worry." he insisted, and Ororo shook her head, offering him a weary smile.

"You are like a father eagle, Professor. You worry over all your chicks." she chuckled.

A smile slowly turned up the corners of his mouth and he turned his gaze back to the fireplace. _"[A father eagle,]"_ he remarked telepathically, _"[I like that comparison, Storm.]"_

An abrupt knock on the door broke the gentle quiet and the telepath immediately turned his wheelchair around, bright and alert. He reached out mentally, just enough to recognize Logan behind the door.

"Enter." he called.

The door swung inward to admit a familiar brunette man with a mouth turned down in a typical grim scowl. Trotting along behind him was a young blonde boy who hung his head, staring at the floor as he hugged a ragged-looking backpack to his chest.

"Logan. You had no problems, I trust?" Xavier asked.

"You sound like you got no faith in me, Prof," the brunette answered in his coarse, tough voice, "We're fine." He gave a hard look at the boy, who refused to raise his head.

"And," Ororo spoke up, not unkindly, "Who might this be?"

The boy only lowered his head further, hunching his thin shoulders.

"Storm, Professor X," Logan exhaled gruffly, "Meet Arial Lavig."

"It is a pleasure, Arial." Xavier said politely, and finally the boy looked up, revealing a pair of bright blue eyes wide with fear set in a round, angelic face.

"_G-guten Abend_, Professor…" Arial surprised them temporarily with his German accent. "…_Herr_ Logan tells me that you vant to offer me a place…to stay? Th-that you take in people…like me?"

_"[Like us.]"_ came the reply, and Arial's eyes widened so much they threatened to fall right out of his face.

"Y-you…h-how did you…?" the boy stammered, and frantically made motions to indicate his own mouth before gesturing wildly at Xavier's.

_"[This is _my_ gift, Arial.]"_ the Professor replied before switching to a verbal response. "I trust you know by now that we are all mutants here at my institute. This mansion is perhaps the closest thing to a safe haven many of us have, and I would like to extend what protection we have to you."

"Me?" the boy asked in disbelief before tightening his grip on his careworn bag, hugging it closer and lowering his face again. "But I am a freak."

"We all feel that way, kid. You just gotta come to accept your mutation as it is: part of you." Logan grumbled, having an unusual moment of wisdom.

"Logan is right, Arial," Xavier agreed, "We all struggle with feelings of guilt over our differences, but given time…I hope you will come to realize that you are unique, special, and that this is all part of who you are."

The boy said nothing, but hunched his thin shoulders high, and shivered.

And to the astonishment of the adults, the ripple of his motion quivered through his shoulders, as though they were trying to separate from his body. Arial looked up, his cherubic features marred only by the dirt and grime on his face, a sign he'd been living on his own and possibly on the streets for a long period of time, and his blue eyes met Xavier's darker ones. The rippling motion slowed, then stopped.

"_Nein_, Professor…" Arial murmured, his expression growing sad, "I am a freak, even among mutants."

There was an odd feeling surrounding the boy, as though he was trying to mentally offer consent to look into his thoughts. Warily, Xavier closed his eyes and reached for Arial's mind.

A chaotic whirlwind of memories rushed to meet him. He saw a beautiful woman with long, curly blonde hair being laid in a casket…a much younger Arial crouched down by a beach on a stormy day…a tall man in a lab coat turning to speak sharply to him…that same man looking over a report printing off from his computer, his expression carefully neutral…preteen Arial, sitting in a room, caught up in something he was drawing…the blonde woman, baking cookies and smiling at him…young Arial, dressed in formal black, watching teary-eyed as the woman's casket was being lowered into the ground…the man in the lab coat standing over him as he filled a syringe with a viscous fluid, an insane smile spreading over his face…

…And Arial, looking at his reflection in a mirror, his eyes widening in horror at the sight of his unnatural new limbs, his mouth opening in a terrified scream…

Professor Xavier opened his eyes, retreating back into his own mind, more than a little shocked at what he'd seen.

"I told you…" Arial muttered into the fabric of his backpack, "I am a freak."

"Well, Arial," the head of the institute spoke slowly, "I still hope your view will change as you spend more time here. Given enough time and an effort on your part to open up, we will all accept you as one of our own."

"I…I don't vant to talk to total strangers about…" he paused, then gave his shoulders a tiny roll, "About this."

"No one is going to force you to relive memories you'd rather not have, Arial. Nor am I going to expose your thoughts to anyone. I would prefer you come to that choice on your own. Just take your time, and give the others a chance to accept you. And give them a chance to be accepted _by_ you, too. Relationships are a two-way street."

The boy said nothing, but looked at the floor and shuffled his feet awkwardly, blushing slightly beneath the grime on his face.

"Storm, show him to his room."

"At once, professor." Ororo complied, walking over and gently placing a hand on Arial's mess of blonde hair. "Come, child. You look like you'd appreciate a chance to clean up."

Silence filled the room as the door shut behind them, and the professor turned his wheelchair around to face the outside window to think.

"Somethin' botherin' you, Professor?" Logan asked after a few moments.

Charles paused before answering, trying to find the best way to explain without exposing too much of what he'd seen. "I saw enough to understand why Arial considers himself a 'freak' among other mutants…and I suppose, to his young mind, his point is valid. If he does have a natural mutated ability, it seems to be both connected to and overshadowed by his unnatural one."

"'Unnatural one?'" Logan parroted, his tone skeptical, and when Xavier started to open his mouth, he cut him off. "Nevermind, don't tell me. You told the kid you'd respect him enough not to go blabbing."

"Hopefully in time, he will come to the choice to tell us all of his own accord." the professor sighed.

There followed a long quiet, and then Logan spoke again. "Think he and the elf will get along?"

Xavier looked up. "Kurt?"

"Yeah. Two little German teeny-boppers…they're bound to find something they have in common."

"You know Logan, I think you may be right. Perhaps Arial _will_ bond with Kurt. I daresay his own mutation may look small in comparison after a time."

"Here's hopin', professor."

Outside the room, watching from the height of the window, something moved away and out of sight, and Xavier nearly jumped. Spinning his wheelchair about to face the window, he shut his eyes, placing his fingertips on his temples, and cast out with his mind.

"Professor?" he heard Logan ask, but he was already caught up in the sea of thoughts. There were the less organized, confused minds of the sleeping animals in the area initially, then came the structured thoughts of the other mutants. The students, already in bed, either awake trying to find ways to fall asleep, or already deep in slumber and dreaming of their tomorrows. Logan, concerned and on his guard, ready to spring into action at a moment's notice. Ororo, her maternal instict kicking in out of concern as she showed Arial into his new room. And Arial himself, still confused, frightened, insecure and vulnerable with his chaotic memories.

But that was all.

He lifted his fingertips from his temples, opening his eyes, and tried to consider what he'd just felt. Had there truly been someone present, or had the leftover dregs of Arial's memories left him slightly paranoid and jumping at shadows?

"What's wrong? What's there?" Logan asked, balling his fists and lowering into a predator's crouch, preparing to pounce at the merest hint of danger.

"Nothing…at least…not anymore." Charles sighed.

"D'ya think…Magneto…?"

"I don't wish to assume things, but I'm rather worried. It _has_ been some time since he last threatened the Institute…"

"Want me to do a quick patrol?"

"That would be appreciated, Logan. Thank you."

And with that, the man known also as Wolverine bolted from the room, eager for a fight, while his superior remained alone as the embers in the fireplace began to flicker and die, wrapped up in his thoughts.

Inside his new room, Arial, having finished changing into a pair of pajamas that were a size too big for his skinny frame, tentatively curled up on the new, unfamiliar bed, and fell into a fitful sleep. And outside his window, a figure watched him toss and turn, blazing eyes glinting with greed at the sight of his unnatural mutation. But by the time Wolverine rounded the corner to that side of the building, there was nothing at the window save the outstretched limbs of the trees, swaying gently in the night air.


	2. Chapter 2: First Impressions

A/N: First, let me just say a big thank you to those of you who already have added this story to your alert lists and/or reviewed! It was a pleasant surprise to log into my e-mail and see that this story had already gotten someone's attention!

Secondly, this chapter does include some of my friends' OCs alongside my Arial. They're going to play minor roles throughout the rest of the fanfic. I'll post the credits to their creators at the end of this chapter.

Finally, and this is the big one here, to all Nightcrawler fans: I too, love Nightcrawler. And I very much want he and Arial to end up friends. But the path to friendship isn't always an easy one, and Kurt and Arial are going to on and off be jerks to each other at times as the story progresses. If you don't like it, than you can feel free to go ahead and stop reading if you can't bear the thought of seeing conflict.

Without further ado, I give you the next chapter!

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><p><span>Chapter 2: First Impressions<span>

Arial woke with a start, an alarm clock blaring near his ear, and he tumbled out of the bed with a crash. Shell-shocked, he scrambled to his knees and automatically reached up to smack the clock off. He stared around the unfamiliar room, utterly at a loss for what to do.

_So it wasn't a dream, _he thought, sitting on his knees as he took in his strange surroundings, _Last night really _did_ happen._

He recalled being found by the intimidating man named Logan, being led to this room by the kind, deep-voiced woman called Ororo, and meeting the psychic, this mysterious Professor Xavier whom the other two spoke so highly of, who'd openly and unexpected offered him a place to stay. All three had said the other students here were mutants and that he, Arial, would be accepted without prejudice.

He grimaced at the memory of those words, no matter how kind the intent they'd been spoken with. He was an outsider and a freak. It didn't matter if he was staying at an institute for humans or for mutants; in the end, he would still be fear, hated, and shunned.

Still…

He stroked the soft material of the oversized pajamas hanging off his frame, letting his gaze slip back to the mattress and pillows.

This was the first real bed he'd slept in, in heavens knew how long. And for the first morning in ages, he'd woken without feeling like one giant, aching sore all over. True, he'd had nightmares, for he always had nightmares, but he'd actually managed to get a decent amount of sleep last night. That in itself was a blessed relief. And he was truly touched at the kindness these older mutants had shown him.

Suddenly recalling the nice lady, Ororo, having said something about enrolling him in a school, Arial made a panicked scramble to his feet, launching himself at a nearby dresser and yanking the drawers open. He wasn't sure if he'd been lucky or if somehow, Professor Xavier had prepared for him ahead of time, but either way, the clothes he found fit him well enough. The hoodie was loose to the point he nearly swam in it, but he didn't mind that. All the better to hide his freakish mutant body with. He gave himself a quick look in the mirror—he still looked grungy and needed a proper shower—but he felt nonetheless a great deal cleaner and more comfortable than he'd been in a _long_ time. He started for the door, then stopped, frozen with fear. Where was his backpack?

"Oh, _scheiβe_!" he swore, running back to the bed and tearing apart the covers. "Vhere is it? Vhere is it?"

There was a soft thump and his eyes found his backpack, having fallen facedown on the floor. He let out a sigh of relief and scooped the careworn bag into his arms, giving it a brief, tight squeeze, then made his way out of the door.

The rich smells of French toast and maple syrup tickled his nose as he entered the hall, prompting a vicious, famished growl from his stomach, and he allowed his senses to guide him to the dining room. He found it with little trouble, and when he glanced inside, he saw several other people seated at the table. _Other mutants_, he realized with a jolt. He started to back away, apprehensive, but at that moment Professor Xavier looked up and caught his eye.

_"[Ah, Arial,]"_ his voice sounded clear in Arial's mind as though they were standing side by side, _"[I was hoping you would join us. Please, come in! Have a seat, eat some breakfast.]"_

Sitting at a table full of strangers, one of whom at least was capable of reading all his innermost thoughts, was one of the _last_ things Arial wanted to do. But the smell of breakfast was like a siren's call to a feverish sailor, and his stomach made the decision for him. Hesitantly, he stepped into the room, drawing all eyes to him, and paused, fidgeting.

"_G-guten Morgen_…" he stuttered, ducking his head slightly.

"Was wonderin' when you were gonna get here, goldilocks." Logan said gruffly, pulling out the empty chair next to him, and Arial hastened to fill it, dropping his backpack on the ground next to him as Professor Xavier addressed the room.

"Everyone," he said with a smile, "I would like you all to meet our newest friend, Mister Arial Lavig." The others responded with a general chorus of hello's around the length of the table before the professor went on. "Arial, may I introduce Scott Summers, Jean Grey, Evan Daniels, Kitty Pryde, Petrov Emppu, Chase Owens, Tiras Lee, and Kurt Wagner."

He'd pointed to each of the students in turn, but the last one, seated directly across from Arial, suddenly vanished in a wink of space, making the blonde boy jump.

"That greeting," said a German accent from somewhere slightly higher than Arial's head, "You are _Deutsche_ too, _ja_?"

He looked up, blinking, to see the boy called Kurt dangling like a monkey from the overhead chandelier and grinning at him like a fox.

"_Ja, Herr _Wagner," he answered the brunette boy warily, "From out of Dresden."

"Dresden?" Kurt said excitedly, "I'm from Munich!"

"ELF!" Logan barked, startling both boys, "Manners."

"Fine." Kurt Wagner pouted, and with a puff of smoke, he disappeared off the chandelier, only to reappear a second later in his own chair.

"That's better." Logan grumbled.

"Sorry," Kurt attempted at stab at sheepishness, "I got excited."

"Yeah whatever, man!" Evan Daniels rolled his eyes, "Just don't do that in the middle of breakfast!"

"Yeah," a new voice chimed in from the doorway, "Some of us might lose our appetites."

Arial turned at the words, involuntarily sucking in a breath. The speaker was a tall, pale girl who looked fit to be a runway model, with white-streaked red hair, wearing green and black clothing that gave her the appearance of a semi-goth, if not full-on goth. At once Arial wished he'd gotten that shower, feeling suddenly very ill-kept indeed.

"You weren't even in the room, Rogue!" Kurt protested.

"Yeah," Kitty Pryde spoke up in irritation, "If we'd had to wait on you to eat breakfast, I'd be like, getting gray hair by now!"

"Tch!" Rogue rolled her eyes as she took a seat and began stabbing disinterestedly at the French toast on her plate. It was only after a second that she seemed to notice Arial's presence at the table and glanced up, giving him a half-nod. "Hey."

"Rogue," Professor Xavier said in a firm, yet calm voice, "It would be most appreciated if in the future, you joined us on time in order to greet your new housemates."

"Yeah, whatever." she drawled, her gaze returning to her plate.

_I don't mind_, Arial thought, unable to tear his eyes from this girl with her icy demeanor, _She can come and go as she wishes. I don't mind at all_. For a second, he thought he saw the professor dart a glance in his direction, but then Kurt said something, drawing his attention.

"_Es tut mir leid_. Vhat did you say, _Herr _Wagner?" he asked.

"I'm totally stoked!" the brunette boy replied, grinning hugely. "You're not just a mutant, but you're from our homeland! This will awesome, especially when we confuse the girls by speaking in _Deutsch, ja_?" He leaned in, his expression positively cheeky, like they were two elementary schoolers starting their own secret club.

"Hey!" Kitty and Jean snapped.

Arial blinked, stunned at the suggestion.

"Well? What do you say?" Kurt asked, his eyes shining with enthusiasm.

"I think," Arial said slowly, "That that is very impolite."  
>A shocked silence fell over the table as all eyes locked onto the two German boys.<p>

"What?" Kurt stuttered. "You're kidding right? He's kidding, right Chase?"

But the ginger-haired girl, who was already watching Arial with the intense gaze of a lie detector, merely shook her head and resumed her soft conversation with the horned girl beside her, Tiras Lee.

"_Nein_," Arial responded, "I think it is impolite to just leave others out of a conversation by speaking a different language, especially vhen they're supposed to be your friends."

Kurt gave him a look as though he were a toy robot with a defective voicebox. "Geez, relax man! It's just a joke, it's for fun!"

The corners of Arial's mouth pulled down in a disapproving grimace. "Vell," he sniffed, "It vasn't very funny."

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><p>Kurt went through the next couple hours of his morning in a bit of an irritated funk. Arial's closed-off nature was bad enough, but his open disdain of Kurt's joking attempts to break him out of his shell had left the other boy utterly stunned and more than a little upset. It had just been a joke, of all the things to get prudish over! He'd been so excited to finally have another mutant he could relate to, really relate to, that he'd mentioned the first best thing he'd thought of.<p>

And his idea had been utterly shot to heck and thrown in his face, like something blown up with a cannon.

The professor had taken him, as well as Scott, Jean and Petrov, aside before they left for school, requesting they help Arial find his way around and get adjusted to the new environment.

"Of course, professor!" Scott had answered at once, ever the good boy, and Jean and Petrov nodded enthusiastically. For his part, Kurt had said nothing.

"I realize that Mr. Lavig hasn't immediately warmed up to you all," the professor said slowly, "But you have to understand that this will take some time. Arial's still got to be allowed the time necessary to adjust to all these changes in his life, so it could take a couple of weeks for him to completely open up to you all. I merely ask that you are patient and supportive until such a time."

He'd spoken to all of them, but Kurt got that distinct feeling the words were meant just for him. The professor was scary that way sometimes.

Thankfully, first and second period he'd had some time to cool down. The more he thought about it, the more Kurt realized the professor had a really good point. Arial was probably still a bit frightened and needed time to open up. Maybe after a week or so, he'd get to see that Kurt joking with him was just his way of trying to get him to interact and be friends.

"Here's hoping." Kurt sighed as he left second period, feeling a bit better. Third period was biology, and when he walked into his class, he was only slightly surprised to find the blonde boy in question standing at the front of the classroom, talking with the teacher, Mr. Dukes.

_Alright! Looks like I've got a chance to try to make things better! After all, he's going to need a partner for today, and mine seems to be missing._ Kurt's optimistic side supplied the idea immediately, and he made a mental note to be the first to volunteer to be Arial's partner when Mr. Dukes was finished introducing their new classmate.

"All right people, settle down, settle down!" Dukes grumbled as the bell rang. "As some of you may or may not have noticed, we have a new student with us today. Class, this is Arial Lavig."

At once Kurt heard snickers erupt around a few tables, in particular the one where Todd Tolansky and Pietro were sitting. More than once he heard a remark about Arial having a "girly name to match his baby-face," and when he saw the blonde boy duck his head, red-faced at the front of the class, he felt a great stab of sympathy for him. Arial didn't need an image inducer, but he certainly didn't deserve that sort of taunting, not on his first day.

"Yes, yes, biology's a riot," Mr. Dukes said boredly, waving a dismissive hand, "Now before we get started on today's dissection, Mr. Lavig here needs a lab partner—"

Kurt's hand was up in the air before the sentence was ended.

"Oh! I don't have a lab partner today, Mr. Dukes! Arial can pair up with me!" he did his best to look eager, something that usually got you your way in this class.

"Excellent, problem solved. But if I get the impression you two are just goofing off and bad-mouthing your classmates in German, I _will_ separate you two. Got it?" he asked, mostly directing this last question at Arial.

"I…er…" he stammered, utterly at a loss for words.

"Good? Great. Now get to work, pixies!" Mr. Dukes said, turning to start unloading all the needed tools for dissecting onto one of the long tables. Arial skittered to Kurt's table, his head down all the while, and he took one of the unoccupied chairs, not meeting the other boy's eyes.

"_D-danke schön_…" he murmured, still clinging to his backpack like it was his firstborn child.

"_Bitte schön_!" Kurt replied. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Hnn…" was the only reply he got.

"Relax! This is going to be easy! You can copy my notes, and all we've gotta do is dissect this thing. It's going to be great!"

For emphasis, he clapped a hand down on Arial's shoulder, and Arial flinched back so hard, he nearly fell completely out of his chair, wild-eyed as though he'd just been attacked. Kurt merely froze, startled. Beneath the hoodie, Arial's shoulder had felt soft. Rubbery, in fact. Not at all like a human shoulder should have felt.

_Is that part of his mutation…? Did I hurt him?_ Kurt wondered.

"Ladies, less talking, more working!" Dukes barked from behind his desk, and Kurt jumped up at once to grab the tools they needed. He scooped them up absentmindedly, still speculating about his new housemate, and walked back to the desk. Todd and Pietro were now making loud remarks about girly men being easily frightened, and Arial was staring determinedly at the floor tiles, cheeks still flushed.

"Ignore them, Arial," he whispered, "They're just idiots."

"Easy for you to say." the blonde boy murmured, and Kurt felt a slight stab of annoyance. Here he was, trying to be a help, and he was still getting his efforts thrown back in his face. Maybe he shouldn't have offered himself up as a lab partner after all.

"Got all you need, you little motormouths?" Dukes grumbled, coming around the class, wheeling a bucket around that smelled strongly of formaldehyde. "Good. If any of you are squeamish, you can go sit out in the hall and puke while the rest of your classmates do all the hard work and earn the grade, because today ladies, we're dissecting a squid."

Immediately half the class—the female half—let out a chorus of "eeewww!" and made gagging faces. However, it was clear that most of them wanted the grade, because only a couple left their seats for the hallway.

"Girls!" Kurt snorted under his voice, but his superior attitude dropped the second he saw Arial.

"D-did he s-say s-s-squid…?" he stammered, his face going dead white as the hands he gripped the table with began to shake violently.

"Yes, a squid." Mr. Dukes declared as he slapped down the dead marine creature onto the tray Kurt had gotten. "Calamari, ladies and gentlemen. Please, refrain from breaking out the duck sauce."

This was met with a general round of half-hearted laughter, and Kurt immediately picked up one of the blades, gently turning the squid over.

"Come on, the smell's not that bad." he said encouragingly. But Arial's color was starting to move from white to a pale green.

"_Es tut mir leid…_" Arial whimpered, "I think I'm going to be sick…"

And with that, he bolted from his chair, clamping a hand over his mouth, and ran out the door like the devil was on his heels. Kurt had watched in astonishment, which slowly turned to irritation once more.

What the heck was Arial's problem?

"Guess the girly-man can't handle the smell of formaldehyde! Too much for his delicate stomach!" Pietro snickered, sending Todd rocking back in his chair with laughter.

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><p>AN: R&R please! For those of you wishing to see what my character, Arial, looks like, my deviantArt name is Yoruhoshi, and I have posted a sketch of him in my gallery. So there ya go. /shameless plug

Petrov Emppu/Prometheus is (C) to Labyrinthinemind of deviantArt

Tiras Lee/Ultrasound is (C) to A-Little-Odd of deviantArt

and Chase Owens/Scarlette is (C) to Penguinsgrl of deviantArt.


	3. Chapter 3: Idiots, Missives and Nachoes

Chapter 3: Idiots, Missives and Nachos

When the lunch bell rang, the students raced into the hallway, shoving, tripping, and squeezing past one another, all in attempts to grab a table first. Jean Grey, however, had other things in mind, and lingered by the door of her class, waiting for Scott Summers to appear among the crowded mass of hormone-driven teenagers. She soon spotted him walking toward her, Kitty Pryde following closely behind.

"You're early." Jean laughed.

"Yeah well, you know me," Scott said with a grin, "Some days I'm faster than others."

"Are we gonna wait for the guys, too?" Kitty asked as she stood on her tiptoes, searching the crowd.

"Petrov's class is on a field trip," Jean responded automatically, "And Kurt, Evan, and Arial are coming from the other side of the cafeteria."

"You talked to them already?" Scott asked suspiciously.

A light flush rose in Jean's face as she shook her head. "Only Petrov." she replied.

"Jean…" Scott began in a warning tone, but was unable to finish his sentence before Chase and Rogue pushed their wait through the crowd and found them.

"So are we getting lunch or what?" Rogue huffed, crossing her arms and scowling. And that being said, the five made their way through the sea of students to the cafeteria, immediately jumping in line to save spots for their friends.

"Ooh, I hope they have deviled egg sandwiches today!" Chase said anxiously, bouncing on the balls of her feet and trying to see over the heads of the people in front of them.

"What are you talkin' about?" Rogue grumbled. "It's _Tuesday_."

"OOH, MEXICAN FOOD!" Chase and Kitty squealed in unison.

"Somebody shoot me." Rogue muttered.

"Which entrée are they serving today?" Scott asked. "Jean, can you see?"

But before the redhead could react, their question was answered for them.

"Nachoes grandé."

"Kurt?" they asked, startled.

The brunette boy had appeared next to them in the line, and promptly gave a quick signal—a light tap on the face of his watchlike image inducer—to indicate he hadn't teleported. "Saw it while I was walking in. Evan's already saving us a table." he said, jerking his thumb over his shoulder.

"Where's Arial?" Scott inquired immediately.

To the astonishment of them all, a brief frown flicked over Kurt's features.

"Not too sure," he mumbled, "Probably at the table with Evan."

None of them quite knew how to respond to this, and so continued to move through the line, the conversation taking a quick turn to the possible nutritional value to be found in a heaping plateful of chips, liquid cheese, and taco meat. After receiving their lunch trays, heaped high with more than enough food to satisfy a hungry group of teenagers, the young X-Men strode unhindered through the cafeteria, toward the table in the back where their friend waited.

"Aww, man!" Evan said excitedly, wringing his mocha-colored hands in eager anticipation, "This is gonna be great!"

"Chill out a little bit, vacuum cleaner," Scott said, handing Evan a tray as he slid into his seat, "Have you seen Arial?"

"Yeah, he's over there." Evan replied, pointing. A few tables down, Arial was sitting alone, curled up, hugging his backpack to his chest and clutching a paper in his hand.

"Hey, Arial!" Chase called without warning, and the blonde boy jumped, spinning about and staring at them with wide eyes.

"Why don't you come sit with us?" Kitty threw in, putting on a friendly smile. Arial continued to stare for a few moments, like he wasn't certain the offer was genuine, but when Rogue gave a half-hearted gesture to join them, Arial slowly got up and started walking towards their table.

"Hey, blondie!"

The X-Men turned, making assorted noises of irritation, to see Pietro Maximo about to sit down at a table with the rest of the Brotherhood of Mutants. A cruel smile played about his mouth as he turned a malicious look on Arial.

"Better not eat anything before gym! Smell of those locker rooms'll just make you upchuck again!" he taunted loudly, causing Lance, Todd, and Fred to roar with laughter. A deep red blush rose in Arial's face as he cast his gaze to the ground and joined the X-Men solemnly at their table.

"Just ignore him, Arial," Evan said fiercely, "He's a first-class order of jerk!"

"They _all_ are." Kitty sniffed, tossing an ugly glare over her shoulder.

"You got sick?" Jean asked, her maternal instincts kicking in.

"Almost." Arial murmured.

"What've you got there?" Scott switched the subject, tilting his head to indicate the paper Arial held in his fist, "Note from the nurse's office?"

Arial stared at the note for a second as though he held a temperamental snake, then let out a sigh. "_Nein_," he answered, shaking his head, "It is a missive. I have to go to the principal's office after school."

Rogue's hand, halfway up to her mouth with a gooey nacho, froze as her eyes darted to the blonde boy. "Principal Darkholme?"

Arial nodded at her, and Jean, who'd been watching him carefully, got the distinct impression their newest friend was inwardly thrilled to have caught Rogue's attention. But this was quickly drowned out by the immediate apprehension that spread throughout the table. There was a long pause, then Scott spoke up.

"Did she say why?" he asked cautiously, "Does the note have a reason on it?"

"_Nein_."

"Principal Darkholme…she's bad news, man." Kurt exhaled.

"Bad news? Vhy is she bad news?"

"Arial, look. Just…just be on your guard when you go to see her." Scott declared. "Don't trust her or anything she says."

"Vhy vould I?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Just promise us you won't." Jean pleaded gently.

But before he could respond, Pietro found another opportunity to start bullying.

"Oh, blondie!" his voice floated over, and Arial glanced over his shoulder. Pietro had swiped a brown paper lunch bad and was dangling it like a cat toy. "Found you a barf bag, sunshine! Because I'm such a nice, considerate guy!" he said in an overplayed, honey-coated tone, passing the paper bag off to Todd, who immediately proceeded to mime vomiting into it. Lance and Fred roared with laughter once more as Pietro tossed Arial a fake smile.

"Oh, real mature." Rogue said sarcastically. "Ignore them, they're idiots."

But Arial's hands moved, clenching into white-knuckled fists on the table, his shoulders seemed to ripple and move weirdly beneath his hoodie, and a hateful expression so violent as to be murderous came over his face.

"One day," he said in a low, dark, hissing whisper, "You von't be so cocky."

Scott and Jean exchanged a quick glance of alarm at this display, and by mutual consent, it was Jean who spoke this time.

"Arial—" she said tentatively, and he turned to her, his murderous look slowly ebbing from his features.

"_Ja_?"

"Please promise us," she insisted firmly, and when he blinked, she clarified, "Promise us you'll be careful…when you go to the principal's office.

"Sure." he said quietly, bobbing his head of blonde curls in consent.

"And we'll wait outside for you," Evan offered, "So you don't have to go home alone."

"No need to get too vorried about me," Arial ducked his head, picking at the nachos he'd been given when he sat down, "It's just a trip to the office. I'm sure _Frau_ Darkholme just vants to see how I am adjusting. Vhat harm could it do?"

Everyone stayed quiet as he started to eat, and Jean looked at Scott again, the two of them sharing the same, fearful thought.

_What harm indeed_.

* * *

><p>AN: R&R please! For those of you wishing to see what my character, Arial, looks like, my deviantArt name is Yoruhoshi, and I have posted a sketch of him in my gallery. So there ya go. /shameless plug

Petrov Emppu/Prometheus is (C) to Labyrinthinemind of deviantArt

and Chase Owens/Scarlette is (C) to Penguinsgrl of deviantArt.


	4. Chapter 4: Meeting Principal Darkholme

Chapter 4: Meeting Principal Darkholme

His last period of the day was art class, something that came as a huge blessing to Arial. He arrived in the class as early as he was able, and to his delight, the instructor said he could simply sit at the table toward the back of the room and draw in his sketchbook. Her students were almost through with a unit on paper-mâchíe, so it wasn't as though he could just jump into a group and get started on the project they were assigned, and in all honesty, he didn't want to either. The chance to be on his own for a bit and draw silently was a blessed relief. He perched on the seat and flipped the sketchbook open to a blank page, already thinking about what he was going to draw. That Pietro seemed to have something against him for running out of Biology, and it needled Arial; the more he recalled Pietro's taunts, that cold sneer, the angrier he got…and it was then he realized what he would draw.

He placed pencil to paper, letting his unvented anger flow through him, channeled into a tangible form as an image began to form beneath the lead. Harsh, violent, slashing lines added shade to the figure slowly taking shape. One of its hands came into being on the paper, clutching what seemed to be fabric, while the other was left unfinished at the wrist, raised high above the figure's head. Arial was starting to give form to the unfortunate soul wearing the clutched fabric, when something nudged him in the side. Startled, he jumped and looked to the seat next to him.

A girl was watching him with wide eyes, and when he jumped, her hands flew to her mouth, as though worried she'd offended him. It took him a moment of staring before he realized she was Tiras Lee, the horned girl from Xavier's Institute. Except her horns were missing, replaced by a rather fancy-looking digital watch on her wrist. Arial raised a blonde eyebrow. Did that watch somehow hide her horns?

Tiras blinked, then pushed a piece of paper across the table to him. Arial glanced down to see light, lovely handwriting at the top of the page, and he had to blink once or twice to actually see what she'd written.

'_You're Arial, right? I'm Tiras. I'm sorry I didn't greet you at breakfast. It's because I can't, you see._'

Arial looked up and gave her a skeptical expression, and she pulled the paper back, quickly adding a line before giving it back.

'_It's part of my mutation. You saw my horns, right? They distort my voice, make it so I can't talk too loud, or the sound makes people around me go delirious._'

Arial pushed his sketchbook back a little and wrote back, '_Delirious?_'

When Tiras saw his reply, she offered him a sheepish smile and responded, '_Well, that's what Professor Xavier said. Delirious. Or it's just confusing or something._'

Arial snatched the paper back, seeing her about to write another apology, and scratched down quickly, '_Don't worry about it._'

When she saw his reply, Tiras ducked her head shyly, as though embarrassed he found out what she was going to do, and spent a few minutes playing with one long strand of her hair, rather than working on her project. Arial waited for a moment, then shrugged and went back to his sketch, convinced she'd said in the note all she wanted to. He focused on adding in details to the figures in his drawing, and was just about to start on the raised hand when Tiras's paper slid to him again, the corner nudging his hand slightly.

'_What are you drawing? Can I see?_' she'd written, and when he glanced up, he saw her surveying him carefully with a hopeful expression. He sighed, then pushed his sketchbook toward her warily, and she leaned forward, studying the lines for a moment before snatching her paper again and writing something furiously. '_That man looks like he's grabbing Pietro Maximo._'

Arial's cheeks flushed and he turned his gaze to the ceiling as he yanked his sketchbook back, taking in the number of ceiling tiles there were directly above his head. He heard the sound of more furious writing and then Tiras nudged him again. She'd added, '_It IS Pietro, isn't it? Did he do something to you?_'

"Don't vorry about it, _fraulein_." he murmured out of the corner of his mouth. "I'll probably mention something to _Frau_ Darkholme after school; she's already asked me to stop by her office."

"P-Principal Darkholme?" Tiras whispered in such a soft voice Arial had to strain his ears to hear her properly. "She's bad news, Arial!"

"Everyone seems to be saying that." he muttered grumpily.

"Lavig! Lee! No talking!" the instructor shouted back to them, making the two jump. Grumbling, Arial returned to his sketch, leaning in close and angling his arms to block out anyone else too curious. He refused to pass the note with Tiras for the rest of the class, so it was only by chance after the bell rang, that he heard her whisper behind him.

"But, Arial…Pietro's one of Principal Darkholme's favorite students…"

He paused, turning to look at her, but they were pushed along by the sea of bodies, and Arial instinctively made a turn down a wider hall, heading for the main office. Here the student population thinned out dramatically, none of them wanting to get too close to the principal's office, and Arial could hear Tiras trotting along behind him. Glancing up to find the door, he stopped in shock.

"Vhat are you all doing here…?" he asked slowly.

For Jean, Scott, Rogue, Kurt, Evan, Kitty, Chase, and the Russian boy he'd seen that morning, Petrov, were standing near the office door, attempting to look casual.

"Thought we'd stick around. You know, for moral support." Evan offered kindly, giving Arial a smile.

"Plus, you've got to have someone with you to help you find your way back to the Institute." Scott said bluntly. Tiras brushed past, heading straight to Kitty and Chase, ducking her head sadly. Arial could only stare. Why was everyone acting like he was attending his own funeral?

"Vell…_ danke schön_…" he said lamely, ducking into the main office. A secretary glanced up as he came in, and he stopped in his tracks, feeling abruptly like an intruder. Wordlessly, he held up the missive, which earned a squint from the woman. She clicked her fingers and he came over, thrusting the paper at her and ducking his head.

"Mr.…Lavig, is it?" she said around a wad of gum in her mouth, peering up at him from her pink jeweled spectacles, which reminded Arial rather forcibly of that Skeeter woman in the Harry Potter books. He gave a quick nod and she waved him into one of the chairs. "Ms. Darkholme will be with you in a minute."

He sank into the chair rather reluctantly, clutching his backpack to his chest as always, and waited, thoughts rushing through his mind like the churning of victims caught in an undertow. What was Principal Darkholme like? Was Pietro really one of her favorite students? Why did all the other mutants keep saying she was bad news? Was she one of those anti-mutant people he kept hearing about? Instinct brought a hand up to brush his shoulder. _Vill she notice…?_

"Mr. Lavig!" a woman's voice called from the door labeled "Principal's Office" behind the secretary's desk. "I will see you now."

A tall, impressive-looking brunette woman with the severe gaze of a predator, dressed in a dark business suit, pumps, and glasses, was watching him intensely. Arial swallowed hard, got to his feet, and scurried past the secretary into Darkholme's office. The principal shut the door behind him and gestured for him to sit in the seat before her desk. Reluctantly he obeyed, settling nervously into the chair, setting the backpack on the floor beside him as he gripped the arms of the chair tightly to hide his shaking.

"So. Mr. Lavig." Darkholme said, walking into his line of vision, folding her arms and leaning against her desk.

"Y-yes, Principal Darkholme?" he murmured, praying he could keep his squirming under control. If he squirmed too much and she saw his shoulders…

"How are you adapting to life here at Bayville High?" she asked, giving him a cool smile.

"F-fine…" he said, looking at his feet.

"Just 'fine?' Are you having any…problems at all?"

He got the impression she was looking at him as though attempting to X-Ray him with her eyes, and he couldn't supress an uncomfortable shudder.

"N-no, ma'am!" he answered quickly.

"Are you certain, Mr. Lavig?" she asked, dark eyebrows rising up to meet her hairline. "I wouldn't want you to feel…unwelcome in my school."

"I-I-I'm fine, ma'am! _Sehr gut_! Honestly!" he stammered, flinching back in his chair.

"Really?" she said in a tone that clearly stated she didn't believe him. "Because I've heard from a couple of concerned classmates that Pietro Maximo was seen teasing you rather viciously."

Ten guesses said those classmates were the ones waiting outside for him.

_Vhy did they say anything to her…?_ his thoughts seemed to whine as he suppressed another squirm and looked back down at his shoes again. Aloud, he said, "Vell…_ja_…he did…I-I don't know vhy he did, I've not done anything to him! I just started this morning!"

"So Pietro _has_ been bothering you. And why did you feel the need to keep that from me?"

"Because he vas only talking…it vas just vords. He didn't try to do anything physical to me."

"But if you don't say anything to someone, Arial, then eventually he may try something. And you know what you must do then?"

"Tell you." he sighed.

"Fight back." Darkholme responded, a slow smile spreading over her face. Arial frowned at her, puzzled. Fight back? What in the world did she mean by that? She was a principal. Was she actually encouraging fighting in her school, or was that meant to have a double meaning, to say that he _should_ tell her?

"O-okay…" he said slowly.

"Are you cold, Mr. Lavig?" she asked abruptly, and he froze. "That's a rather thick hoodie to be wearing at this time of the year. Not to mention, it seems a bit too big for you. Surely we can find you one more your size."

She reached out, and her nails suddenly seemed like jagged talons, reaching out to rip away the security of his hoodie and expose the truth. Instinct forced him out of the chair and behind it in a flash, scooping up his backpack as he moved out of reach.

"_N-nein_, thank you…I like _this_ hoodie, I vant to keep it." he said. "Th-thank you for the concern, Ms. Darkholme, but if it's alright, I need to be heading home…"

She frowned at him, looking utterly less than pleased, but she made no effort to stop him. "Of course, Mr. Lavig. Far be it from me to keep a young person from returning home in time for supper."

"Thank you…" he murmured again for safe measure, stepping backward.

"You're welcome, of course. And remember, Mr. Lavig, if you have any trouble, you tell me." she said, her glare frosty. Swallowing hard, he gave her a nod before fleeing from the room. He met the others in the hall, but refused to say anything about the meeting, let alone the fact that Miss Darkholme frightened him.

Back in her office, Mystique dropped her guise, the features of Principal Darkholme fading into the blue-skinned, redheaded woman of whom Xavier's students were so wary. Her indigo lips curved upward into a smile as she peeked through the blinds of her window, watching the curly-haired blonde boy trotting along, white-faced, behind the other young mutants. He walked slightly apart from them, a good sign, one that meant he'd not fully accepted them yet. There was still plenty of room to make a…better impression on the boy.

"All it takes is a little nudge in the right direction. A little miscommunication and manipulation." she murmured aloud.

The locks on the window suddenly latched themselves, making her jump.

"Don't fail me again, Mystique. We cannot afford to lose the boy the way you lost Rogue." a cold, deep voice echoed in the room behind her.

"I won't lose this one, sir," she murmured, fear making her hands clammy.

"Be sure you don't." came the snap. "Arial Lavig is far too valuable. I won't let Charles take this one, even if I have rip the boy from his icy, dead hands."

* * *

><p>AN: Arial Lavig belongs to me! (And if you want to see what he looks like, check out my deviantArt account, under the username Yoruhoshi. /shameless plug)

Tiras Lee/Ultrasound is (C) to A-little-odd of deviantArt

Petrov Emppu/Prometheus is (C) to Labyrinthinemind of deviantArt

Chase Owens is (C) to Penguinsgrl of deviantArt


	5. Chapter 5: The Unnatural Mutation

A/N: Sorry about the delay!

This chapter's a bit longer than normal, but you're going to get to see Arial's _un_natural mutation for the first time, as well as a glimpse into his past. Please enjoy, and R&R!

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 5: The Unnatural Mutation<span>

Over the next few days, the X-Men did their best to further help Arial settle in and become accustomed to life in the Institute. During these few days, there were more major arrivals in the mansion. The first, a Yarin Daniels, had arrived late one night, and refused to emerge from his room, being incredibly self-conscious of his mutation. The second, a tough-looking boy named Ashton Jackson, was introduced at breakfast, but kept to himself and said nothing to anyone who tried talking with him. The third, and perhaps oddest arrival, was that of Petrov Emppu's younger sister, Yana. It was unclear as to whether or not Yana was a mutant herself, but definitely she had found a mutant toddler on the side of a road, abandoned, and refused to part with the child. The toddler in question had antlers sprouting from his head, and was nicknamed "Bambi" by Yana, a name that quickly caught on with the rest of the mutants.

The week was going rather well overall, Professor Xavier reflected one morning as he observed Logan putting some of the students through another "game" of "Capture the Flag."

"_Was ist das_?" a voice suddenly said beside him. Pleasantly surprised, Charles turned to look at Arial, toting his backpack around again and blinking his large blue eyes at the training session taking place.

"Ahh, Arial. They're playing "Capture the Flag" as an exercise for their powers. With more practice comes better control."

"You know," Logan looked over his shoulder back at them from where he stood coaching, "You can join in if you want, goldilocks. The more, the merrier or whatever the heck it is people say."

"Th-thanks, _Herr_ Logan, but I'm fine! I vas just looking for a place to sit down and draw." he explained, opening his backpack and pulling out a sketchbook for emphasis.

Professor Xavier gave a chuckle. "This may not be the best place for that, Arial. You never know when—"

"LOOK OUT!" a voice shouted as a huge shadow suddenly engulfed Arial. The blonde boy reacted on instinct, throwing himself to the side and tucking into a ball before rolling back out into an awkward crouch. And he did so just in the nick of time too, as Nightcrawler crashed down on the spot where he'd been seconds before.

"Kurt!" Xavier said. "Are you alright?"

"Ow…that smarts…" the indigo-hued boy groaned, rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry, overshot my 'porting. You okay, Arial?"

"Okay?" the other boy shrieked. "You could have killed me!"

"Hey! I said sorry!" Kurt snapped.

"And you think 'sorry' makes it okay? Vhy, you are the most inconsiderate _dummkopf_ I ever—"

"Arial! Kurt!" Xavier spoke up sharply, startling them both into immediate silence. "This is not the time or place for a childish argument. It had been my hope that with the addition of Arial into the Institute, that perhaps the two of you could connect and help one another, not dissolve into fighting because of your differences."

Both boys cast their eyes down, Kurt's face falling into lines of shame where an angry flush rose in Arial's.

"I'm very disappointed in you both, but I suppose it'll just take some more time and adjustment to one another. But let us start with this," the professor went on more calmly, "Kurt, it would help if you try to be a bit more aware to Arial's sensitivities. Arial, you have to understand that Kurt is merely trying to make you feel welcome in his own way, and that this incident was an accident. He is _not_ trying to offend you or hurt you."

"I never said that…"Arial muttered, raising his eyes up into a small glare.

_"[No, you never said it.]"_ Xavier replied, and the blonde boy cast his eyes down again, the color in his cheeks darkening. "Perhaps now would not be the best time for you to join the game."

"_N-nein_…I vould just like to sit somevhere and draw…" Arial murmured.

The elder mutant sighed, then nodded, and the blonde boy darted away as quickly as though he'd been burned with a match.

"You can't _make_ the kid make friends with everyone, Chuck." Logan said after a moment's pause.

"What is his problem?" Nightcrawler demanded, spreading his hands helplessly. "I'm only trying to help him relax!"

"I know that, Kurt," Xavier answered patiently, "But Arial needs to open up to us all on his own."

Arial finally found a perch on the fountain in front of the mansion, sitting down in a huff and grumbling under his breath. The professor had no right to just read his mind and then blurt it out where everyone could hear! Especially Wagner! Arial didn't know what the elf-boy's deal was, but he'd never done anything to Kurt to deserve that animosity!

"_Blau dummkopf_…" he muttered, pulling his sketchbook out of his backpack, opening to his current project. He was only half-finished, and his subject was not in sight, but he was determined to finish the sketch nonetheless. It was a lightly penciled drawing of Evan Daniels, who'd been lying on the couch the night previous, popping bone spikes out of his fist and shooting them up into the ceiling out of boredom. Arial had happened upon the scene quite by accident, but something about the image captured his attention, and he'd very quietly sat in a corner of the room and started to draw Evan.

Now though…Evan was probably in the middle of that game with the other mutants, and Arial certainly wasn't inside. Still, he'd gotten most of the actual pose and lines done, so all that was left was a lot of detail. Pushing his anger from his mind to his pencil, he started to go over the lines of Evan's arm. It was considerably more difficult than drawing a normal arm, as he had to account for the irregular shapes of the spikes emerging from skin, but he was determined to finish nonetheless.

Seconds turned into minutes, and before long, the minutes had become an hour. The details on Evan had been finished, and he'd moved on to the lines of the sofa.

"Are you going to shade it?" a voice asked abruptly.

Arial jumped and raised his head, flushing pink, to find Ashton Jackson standing over him. The older boy tilted his head to the side in curiosity, the sun catching on his blue-and-black hair and punk rocker clothes, giving him a somewhat dangerous and exotic appearance.

_I want to draw that too_… Arial thought.

"_J-ja_…" he replied, "But I vant to finish the details first."

"You're drawing the Spyke kid?" Ashton asked, and when Arial nodded, a slight smile turned up the corners of the pierced mouth. "It's good. You've got a lot of talent."

"R-really?"

"Yeah," Ashton said with a small nod, starting to walk away, smiling over his shoulder, "Show it to me when you're finished?"

"Oh! Of course!" Arial answered. A small bubble of weightlessness started to build in his chest; was he actually finally making a friend? Did Ashton really mean what he'd said? Ashton, who hadn't spoken a single word to anyone other than Professor Xavier and the adults since he'd arrived? He liked _his_ art?

Very, very slowly, a broad smile took over Arial's mouth as he beamed, elated at this newfound possibility, and he immediately went back to his drawing with renewed vigor. He began getting wrapped up in the work again, and didn't notice any of the other mutants as they started to form a small crowd and watch him. Eventually he paused, feeling the presence of the others and looked up, nervous once more.

"Whoa, sorry!" Kitty Pryde said, backing up a bit. "We just wanted to know what you're drawing. You were like, totally concentrated, so we didn't want to interrupt."

Arial blinked. Kitty, Evan, Chase, Petrov, Rogue, and Yana were all watching him curiously, and probably had been for several minutes. Heat started to rise in the young German boy's cheeks.

"Y-you vere are vatching me?" he asked timidly.

"Only for a few moments, _da_." Petrov spoke up.

"Whatcha drawin', man?" Evan asked, stepping forward. Arial hesitated for a moment. Would Evan be angry that he started drawing him without permission? The fear threatened to choke Arial, but finally he remembered that the subject always has a right to know they were an inspiration, and he held out the sketchbook.

"Vell…I, uh…"

"WHOA! Is this ME?" Evan blurted out, and immediately Kitty and Chase were at either side of him, looking over his shoulders. "It IS me, isn't it?"

Reluctantly, Arial nodded, his face going red.

"Oh wow!" Kitty gasped, "That is TOTALLY you, Evan!"

At this, Petrov and Yana joined the others, eyes wide with curiosity.

"Geez, Arial!" Chase said, eyes flicking over to him, "You're good!"

"Yeah, man!" Evan agreed, looking up from the drawing, confused, "Why didn't you tell us? You're really talented!"

Arial immediately began to examine his nails intently, ducking his head, blonde curls bouncing. "I…I…I am sorry…"

"'Sorry?' Man, what are you sorry for?" Evan immediately jumped up on the fountain next to Arial's perch, brandishing the sketchbook in his face, "This is _tight_! You drew me and it looks awesome!"

"Probably better than the real thing, too." Rogue muttered. "Less noisy, anyway."

Yana shot Rogue a withering look before smiling at Arial. "_Da_, I agree with the Spyke. You have a talent."

Arial looked up, his face slowly breaking into a shy, tiny smile.

"_D-danke schön_!" he murmured. "All of you."

"Hey, we're just calling it like we see it," Chase offered with a smile.

"Yeah, we're only telling the truth!" Kitty added, beaming at him.

"Yeah, man! Hey, why don't you come play some Guitar Junkie with us? We're starting a mini-tournament!" Evan said, getting to his feet.

"Guitar Junkie? You mean the video game? B-but I don't know how to—"

"It's cool, Lavig, we'll teach you!" Chase said happily, offering him a hand up from his seat. "After all, we've still gotta teach Petrov and Yana, too!"

"A-alright," he said, stuffing his supplies into his backpack once more and getting to his feet. Maybe, just _maybe_, he was making friends at the Institute after all!

Things were looking up for Arial!

* * *

><p>Things were looking way down for Arial.<p>

School on Monday brought with it an unexpected and rather unpleasant surprise. Principal Darkholme had announced an official, mandatory field trip for all freshman and sophomore students who had biology or scholarship biology class for second, third, or fourth period. At first, there was a round of protest, until the students were informed they would be going to the Bayville Aquarium, and then the protests turned into half-wild shrieks of victory. Shortly into first period, the principal called all the students attending over the PA system out to the buses, where they were all loaded under the supervision of several tired-looking chaperones who seemed largely concerned with finishing off their mugs of java. Arial darted for a seat in the back of the bus the second he got on, and hunched out, clinging to his backpack like a shield and desperately wishing no one would sit next to him.

"Hey, Lavig! This seat taken?" someone asked almost at once. He suppressed a groan, only to look up and see Evan beaming as he walked up to him.

"Oh! Y-you can sit vith me, it's fine!" he said immediately, straightening up with relief and scooting down a bit. "I didn't know you had—"

"Biology second period?" Evan finished his thought. "Yeah, I tested out of Science 9 when transferring to Bayville, so they put me in Biology. I wasn't expecting a field trip. Pretty cool!"

"Like, pretty cool?" came a scoff as Kitty walked down the aisle of the bus, Chase right behind her. "I guess, if you really wanna get out of class or whatever. But the aquarium is going to be totally Dullsville."

"I think something's fishy about this field trip, no pun intended," Chase murmured as she and Kitty slid into the seat across from Evan and Arial. "I mean, it's practically a pop quiz. We just get a field trip out of nowhere that there's supposedly no planning for or anything? I think Principal Darkholme's up to something."

At this, Evan and Kitty's faces both went grave and they gave nods of agreement. Arial could only sit and frown. Why in the world did everyone keep insisting the principal was such a bad lady? Yeah, she'd freaked Arial out a bit when he had to visit the office, but it wasn't like she was Ghengis Khan reincarnated or anything.

"Ha! You _would_ yell "conspiracy theory" at a field trip, Owens!" came a scoff as Todd hopped into the seat just in front of the girls.

"Shut up and mind your own business, Tolansky!" Chase snapped.

"You guys keeping coming down on Darkholme like she's the Devil's right-hand man or something." Pietro snorted as he suddenly took the seat opposite Todd. The platinum-haired boy sneered over the back of the seat, particularly at Arial. "Lookee here, did Sunshine Daisy make a fwend?"

Arial's blood began to boil, his fists clenched in reaction and his eyes narrowed. _Oh, vhat I vouldn't give to introduce your face to a blender_… he thought bitterly.

"Aww, what's wrong, blondie?" Pietro cooed in false sympathy, "Do field trips make you sick too?"

"Knock it off, Pietro!" Evan growled, a number of spikes surfacing on the skin of his hand. "Arial didn't do anything to you!"  
>"Course he did," Todd chimed in, digging a finger vigorously in his ear as though attempting to clean it, "He exists."<p>

"Seriously you two! Knock it off!" Kitty snapped.

"Oooh, and what are you gonna do about it, Pinkie-Pie?" Pietro snickered.

But the growing threat of a fight was cut short as the chaperones started to file onto the bus, and two of them swooped upon the seats Todd and Pietro had attempted to keep to themselves. Immediately Pietro calmed down, sulking at having to sit with a chaperone, and to an extent, Todd followed suit, though he and Chase continued to bicker on and off during the ride. For the most part, Arial found the ride uneventful as Evan started to explain skateboarding to him, but his paranoid sense of being closed in and trapped remained, and didn't abate until they finally arrived at the aquarium. He stepped off the bus and sucked in a deep breath, relieved to finally have a little elbow room and breathing space. Still, he hovered near Evan and the girls, not wanting to be alone.

"Are ve the only ones?" he asked.

"Hey, sorry! I got put on another bus with Lance and Fred!" Kurt was suddenly right next to them, his voice bitter with annoyance at having to be alone on his bus ride. Arial shut his eyes and let out a tiny groan. Of course. He'd forgotten about Wagner.

"It's cool man, it's cool." Evan said kindly.

"You only missed Chase and Tolansky arguing…again." Kitty snorted, and Chase's face went a bright red.

"Someone's gotta keep Toad-boy in his place." she muttered, not meeting anyone's eyes.

"Looks like the happy family's all together again." Kurt muttered, pointing ahead, and Arial opened his eyes. Ahead, Todd, Pietro, Fred and Lance had all joined back up and started toward the aquarium doors after the chaperones, chuckling darkly amongst themselves. Cold sweat broke out over Arial, and he clenched his fists, hoping no one would notice how clammy he'd gotten.

"Hey, don't worry, Ari," Evan said kindly, "We won't let 'em bug ya."

"Yeah like, safety in numbers." Kitty said encouragingly.

"Just stick with us and we won't steer you wrong!" Chase threw in, and without warning, reached up to pat his shoulder. He caught the motion out of the corner of his eye and simply reacted, shifting quickly to the side, leaving them all staring at him.

"_Verzeihung_…" he said, "Y-you startled me…"

There was a long pause before Chase offered him a smile and waved the whole thing off. For a moment Arial was relieved, but as they walked up the steps to the entrance he caught Kurt giving him a stony look.

Was ist das_?_ Arial thought angrily. _That jerk's gotten too close before…he ought to know at least from that that I don't like being touched…_

But soon the field trip was underway and the entire incident got pushed to the back of his mind. Each of the different teachers had individual assignments for their students, and Dukes saddled his with a set of five questions to be answered.

"Listen, pixies," he groaned, nursing a huge thermos full of coffee as he handed a paper around to each student, "You've got a sheet of questions. The answers are on the plaques around the aquarium. You've got two hours until lunch to run around like Mr. Whiskers on catnip and then when we meet up in the café here, you're turning the questions in, got it? You can go alone or you can pair off with someone, just make sure you, your partner, and your paper are in the aquarium café by lunch. Now scat!"

Arial took his sheet reluctantly and very quickly backed away from the rest of the class, hoping against hope to ditch Kurt as well as Todd and Pietro. He slipped down one of the hallways and started on the tour route, falling in behind one of the other classes, whose teacher was more than happy to let the tour guide do her work for her.

"Arial," a voice hissed nearby, "What are you doing here?"

He turned and saw Chase, a guilty anvil dropping into his stomach at having avoided her so bluntly earlier. She scooted to the edge of the class as they walked, holding a composition book and a thick green packet up at face level, as though trying not to draw attention to herself. Arial thought it a rather conspicuous method of trying to remain _inconspicuous_, but he refrained from saying so.

"Mr. Dukes gave us a sheet of questions," he replied, "_Und_ told us ve're on our own to find the answers."

"Seriously?" Chase groaned, "You guys are so lucky! We got these huge packets to fill out! It's freaking ridiculous! There's no way we can get it finished by lunch!"

He followed along with their class for a while, letting Chase babble on like a talk show radio host, occasionally pointing out one of the answers for her packet when she missed them. After twenty minutes or so, they came to a tank full of—

"Sea horses." Arial murmured, forgetting the work, the tour, and Chase altogether for a moment. Crumpling his assignment into a ball, he stuffed it into his pocket without thinking and approached the tank in a bit of a dream-like haze. For a moment, the world ceased to exist all around him as he watched the little golden creatures slowly move around their confined little world. All he could do was watch, and it seemed an eternity had passed when he finally heard Chase talking to him.

"Hello! Earth to Arial! Anybody home in there? You've been staring at those sea horses and ignoring me for the past three minutes!"

"O-oh…_verzeihung, fraulein_," he murmured, jolted out of the dreamy haze, "I did not mean to be rude…"

He turned to face her and found her give him a weird look. "Okay," she said slowly, "So what's so mesmerizing about these little guys, huh?"

He blinked at her for a moment, hesitating, unsure whether or not he should tell her. Finally he sighed, and looked back to the tank, watching a smaller sea horse curl the end of its tail around a stalk of seaweed.

"My _mutti_…" he whispered. "She used to love sea horses. She thought they vere the most beautiful creatures in the vorld."

"_Mutti_? Your mother?" Chase said, and when he nodded, she asked, "What happened to her?"

A memory came rushing back to him, hazy and half-remembered. A scream, blood on the floor, on the walls, weeping, his mother's shoulders wracking with sobs, an open set of double glass doors, gossamer curtains stirring in the ocean breeze, and the trail of blood on the balcony—

"She died," he said coldly. "Isn't that vhat people do? Ve live, ve grow, ve die."

"I…I…Arial, I'm sorry—" she started to say, but he swept past her and kept walking, his strides quicker and longer than before, moving without a true destination, except to get away from everyone else, to be alone. As for the memories, he'd long since stopped trying to run away from them; he wouldn't ever escape, so what was the point in that?

"Arial, wait!" Chase called after him, far enough behind her voice sounded muffled and distant…or was it just that way because the memories were threatening to swamp him again? He broke into a run, barely registering his surroundings.

_"Arial," his mother whispered, tears running down her cheeks and mixing with the blood on her face, disappearing deep into the cuts, "My baby. My beautiful baby boy."_

Several other people shouted at him as he went by, but the words passed right through him, as though they were speaking another language entirely.

_The knife had fallen from her hands as he'd come in, and she slowly sank to her knees, starting to cry. It was the crying that scared him more than the blood or his mother's new, inhuman features showing through the slashes in her clothes. Mothers weren't supposed to cry._

He darted down a less congested hallway, nearly flying down the incline.

_"I'm so sorry, Arial," she sobbed, enveloping him in her arms one last time, the blood soaking through his clothes, "But _Mutti_ can't live with this anymore. I'm not strong enough. I'm sorry."_

His pace didn't lessen, not even for the flight of stairs, and he charged up them three at a time.

_"Arial, my baby," she whispered, "I know you'll find a way to escape this. You have your grandfather's lion's heart. Live, love. Live and be free." She let go, shuffling backwards stiffly, the blood leaving dragging marks, like someone was trying to half-heartedly paint the floor crimson._

Windows looking into the glass tanks lined the upward flight of stairs, and the hallways on the landing. He charged down the one dead ahead, which moved into a left turn, and he ran down it, tears stinging the corners of his eyes.

_"Never forget that I love you."_

That hallway too, ended, opening into a wider observation area, and he skidded to a halt, panting hard.

_The ocean breeze tugged at her long, golden curls, undulating like rolling waves until they sank lower and finally out of sight._

_ "I love you, Arial."_

He looked around wildly, realizing what he'd done, realizing he'd quite efficiently gotten himself lost, and buried his face in his hands, tears leaking out between his fingers as he fought down a sob.

_"I love you."_

"Then vhy did you leave me…?" the old question escaped with an exhale against his wishes, and for several long moments, he struggled to breath normally, to stop the crying before it started. At long last, he got it under control, and looked up again, this time taking in his surroundings.

"Vhere…?" he murmured, watching the glass, and he jumped, startled, as he realized what marine animal was watching him.

An octopus was moving slowly in the tank, curiosity overcoming shy nature and bringing it closer to the glass. Perhaps it didn't get any visitors? Or maybe it was just lonely…? Tentatively, Arial approached the observation window and gently pressed his hand against it, staring back at the octopus. It moved a little closer and gently extended a tentacle, as though about to poke at the window. Arial gave a dry, hollow chuckle. Was it just ironic coincidence that he had run here, of all places, or had his instincts led him to this spot?

Without warning, the octopus spun and swam away as though frightened.

"Gee, sunshine, didn't think you liked calamari."

His blood began to boil again, the cold, lonely ache in his chest turning to an angry, consuming heat as he glanced at the reflected silhouette in the Plexiglas.

"Vhat do you vant?" Arial growled.

"Psh! I should have thought that was obvious!" Pietro answered, crossing the observation room in the blink of an eye and spinning Arial around to face him.

"H-how—" Arial stammered. No one should be able to move that fast!

"I'm bored," Pietro went on with a sneer, "And I hate being bored, so I'm gonna have some fun! And it looks like you need some fun, girly-boy!"

* * *

><p>"Kurt! Kitty!" Chase panted, skidding to a stop, "Evan! Have any of you seen Arial?"<p>

All three of them turned, eyes widening in surprise.

"I haven't seen him since he left the rest of the class earlier." Kurt replied, "Why?"

"I think I upset him, and he ran off, but I lost him," Chase replied, "I dunno which way he went!"

"Owens! You know something about this?" demanded an angry voice, and they all looked up to see Lance, Todd, and Fred approaching them.

"Know about what, Lance?" Kitty demanded coldly.

"Yo, Pietro ditched us, y'know," Todd hopped up onto a railing to better get to eye level, "Didn't say where he was goin' or nothin'."

"So what?" Evan snapped, eyes narrowing, "Not like he's ever been a big team player, has he?"

For a second, the remaining Brotherhood members fell silent, but Lance's dark eyes were already scanning their number and he abruptly frowned.

"Looks like he's not the only one who's missing. Where's Lavig?"

* * *

><p>Arial crashed to the floor hard, the impact jarring his teeth as he twisted to avoid breaking his arm.<p>

"What's wrong, baby-face? Not having fun?" Pietro taunted, darting from side to side around him, flexing his fists. "'Cause I'm having tons!"

His foot moved in a blur, driving deep into the tender flesh of Arial's stomach as he rapidly began kicking the blonde boy. Each blow came faster and harder than the one before, and Arial's insides threatened to expel his breakfast.

"Aww, you're not even gonna try fighting back? You're such a killjoy, especially for some girly loser those X-geeks took in! C'mon, Sunshine Daisy, hit me, I dare ya!"

He delivered the last kick with more force than before, lifting Arial up enough to send him rolling a few feet.

"_Dummkopf_…" Arial snarled, pushing up with his arms, struggling weakly to get to his feet, "Now you've really pissed me off."

"Oooh, baby-face is angwy! I'm sooo scawed!"

Arial spun to face him, blue eyes blazing with hatred as the shoulders of his hoodie ripped completely open. Pietro's face fell, his color draining.

"What…the…"

"All I vanted vas for you to leave me ALONE!" Arial roared, lunging.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe we're helping you idiots look for your egomaniac!" Kitty huffed.<p>

"_I_ can't believe we're helping you geeks look for your woobie!" Todd shot back.

"Leave Arial alone!" Chase snapped, her scarlet eyes narrowing, "He's insecure enough without you jerks picking on him!"

"Oooh, does Owens have a crush?" Fred teased.

"Shut up, Fred." They all chorused, rounding a corner. They found themselves at a crossroads. Two lower hallways branched off, and in the far left there rose a stairway with Plexiglas windows looking into different tanks lining the side of it.

"Great, now what?" Evan groaned.

"Do you guys have any idea where Pietro would have gone?" Kurt demanded, turning to Lance.

"How the heck am I supposed to know which way he went?" Lance snapped back, rounding on him.

At that point, they heard Pietro's voice come down from the stairway, screaming, "HELP! HE'S CRAZY! GUYS WHERE ARE YOU? HEEEEELLLLLLLPPPP!"

"That way." they all muttered, charging up the stairs.

"Yo, keep screaming, man!" Todd called up.

"What, are you crazy?" Evan snapped, "That'll bring the security guards for sure!"

Pietro yelped again as they reached the top landing, and Kitty pointed down the hall directly ahead.

"This way!"

They ran, following the turn into the observation room…and came upon one of the most unreal sights any of them had seen.

Pietro wasn't struggling like they'd hoped, but was on the ground, his whole body rigid and white with terror, his eyes almost popping out of his head as Arial crouched near him, a butterfly razor pointed at the other boy's throat. But that wasn't the least of it. Something thick, red, and ropy sprouted from Arial's hoodie where the shoulders had been ripped open, something that was wrapped tightly around Pietro's ankles and neck.

"Arial?" the young X-Men gasped.

"Pietro!" Lance said in disbelief.

"W-wh-wh-what the he-heck is _that_?" Todd stammered, pointing.

All the octopi in the tank seemed to have crowded around the windows, watching in curiosity, and for a moment, it seemed as though an artist had gone over the scene with a little inspiration from M.C. Escher, raising two of the octopus tentacles so they appeared to be coming out of the tank and attempting to strangle Pietro. But there wasn't a single fissure, a single crack in the glass anywhere. The octopi were simply floating in place and watching.

Arial shifted as he turned to face them, his ruined hoodie slipping, revealing the truth.

_These_ octopus tentacles were growing out of his very shoulders.

"He asked for it." Arial said coolly, lowering the butterfly razor as he faced the others, starting to come out of his crouch.

"He's crazy!" Pietro yelped. "Get him offa me!"

Arial's blonde head snapped around as his blue eyes bore into Pietro, and the tentacles—_his_ tentacles—flexed, causing the platinum-haired boy to gag.

"All I have to do," he growled, "Is squeeze."

Furious, Lance raised his hands at this, the floor in the room beginning to shake.

"Are you crazy, man?" Evan yelled, grabbing one of the older boy's wrists. "You'll bring the whole place down on us!"

"Y-yeah, Alvers!" Todd agreed, "T-toads may like water, but we don't like drowning!"

Reluctantly, Lance lowered his hands and the tremors slowed to a stop.

"Okay, but he has to let Pietro go!"

"Come on, Arial, let him go!" Kurt said, taking a step forward, only to stop short at the look on the other German boy's face.

"Do you have any idea," he hissed, "What he did to me?"  
>"Look, we've all got a pretty good idea," Kitty interjected, walking up to him, "But you've got to let him go! We've got to get you out of here, before anyone sees! We'll get in like, mega-huge trouble!"<p>

Arial's scowl didn't lessen, but his tentacles arched higher and carefully uncoiled from Pietro, who got to his feet immediately and rushed to the safety of his friends.

"You're gonna pay for that, Lavig," he gasped, rubbing his throat and glaring.

"Ve'll see about that." Arial spat back, a ripple undulating through his tentacles. Pietro went rigid again, and darted from the observation room, Fred and Todd close behind.

"This isn't over, pretty-boy!" Lance snapped, before charging out behind the others. A shout reached their ears, someone yelling after the Brotherhood.

"Oh, great!" Kitty groaned.

"We're in for it now!" Chase murmured, "Ten to one those are security guards!"

They turned as one to Arial, and his stony expression had melted, leaving behind only a boy who looked very lost, confused, and hurt.

"He…he…I…" he stuttered.

"Man, you're spilling the whole story when we're all home, got it?" Evan said, giving him a pointed look. But before Arial could respond, Kurt had grabbed his wrist, and they'd vanished in a puff of smoke. And when the security guards arrived in the observation room, all they found were three high school kids, arguing about soap operas while filling out their homework packets and conveniently unaware that anything happened with any classmates while they were watching the octopi.

* * *

><p>AN: A huge thanks to Chimera385 on here for allowing me the brief use of his OC, Yarin Daniels!

Chase Owens/Scarlette belongs to Penguinsgrl of deviantArt.

Petrov Emppu/Prometheus, Yana Emppu and "Bambi" all belong to Labyrinthinemind of deviantArt.

And last but most certainly not least, Ashton Jackson/Unknown belongs to sweetbean882006 of deviantArt.


	6. Chapter 6: The Legacy of Edmund Lavig

Chapter 6: The Legacy of Edmund Lavig

Teleportation, Arial discovered that day, despite being a very useful and perhaps convenient power, was decidedly uncomfortable. He wasn't sure how Kurt could stand it, but then again, it was probably so natural for the blue boy that he didn't get the nasty sensation of his stomach bouncing like a child going to town on a trampoline. A small series of multiple BAMF's finally landed them just outside the Xavier Institute on the other end of Bayville.

"I think ve can just valk from h—" Arial started to say, before Kurt teleported one last time. Again there was that feeling of distortion, floating through nothingness with your stomach plunging down into your feet, followed by the slightly disorienting pop as you came to your destination with your stomach rapidly running back up to where it was supposed to be, and the two boys were standing on the island counter in the middle of the kitchen.

"I never vant to do that again!" Arial gasped, pressing a hand to his heart.

"Trust me, you get used to it," Kurt replied.

"You are both home?" said a feminine voice with a Russian accent, and they both turned to see Yana entering the kitchen, as Bayville High hadn't yet accepted all of her transfer papers. "Oh, good! You help me find Bambi!"

There was a pause as Kurt and Arial exchanged a wary expression. Yana didn't look like much and she hadn't been at the Institute very long, but the two boys had already developed a healthy respect for the girl's over-protective nature of her ward. Neither of them was about to object to her command.

"Bambi is missing again?" Kurt asked, hopping down from the counter and approaching Yana.

"He was right by the sofa one minute," she said, spreading her hands helplessly, "And the next thing I know, gone! Ashton is helping too, but we're not finding Bambi."

Arial started to ask her about Ashton, curious as to why the older boy also wasn't in school, when movement caught his eye. Turning, his eyes were drawn to the top of the fridge.

There, atop the fridge, struggling to open a container of candy, tiny antlers gently bumping the ceiling, was the frustrated mutant toddler. The child wriggling, attempting to pry the lid off the container, his back end inching closer to the edge bit by bit.

"LOOK OUT!" Arial shouted, just as Bambi slipped. Both Yana and Kurt jumped and in that second, the blonde boy leapt from the counter, tentacles emerging from his hoodie and surging forward. It wasn't, Arial reflected two painful seconds later, the wisest move he could have made, but a soft thump on the coiled end of his tentacles and a happy giggle brought him a huge sigh of relief.

"Again, again!" Bambi shrieked, clapping his chubby little hands, eyes shining as he surveyed Arial.

"Bambi!" Yana gasped, scooping him up. "Don't scare me like that!"

"Nice one, Lavig!" Kurt said, and he sounded genuinely impressed.

"Hey, what's all the racket?" came another voice as Ashton stepped into the kitchen. "Oh, you found Bambi. Good. Wagner? Arial? What are you two doing back?"

At this, the blue boy's countenance grew grim. "It's…complicated. We're going to have to explain to everyone later."

"You mean, _I'm_ going to have to explain." Arial snapped, getting to his feet.

"What's—_whoa_." Ashton fell short of his question, eyes growing wide as they came to rest on Arial's shoulders. "Tentacles?"

Yana gave a tiny shriek and a hop. "What?"

"Rubber bouncy snakes!" Bambi giggled, pointing. Arial groaned, ducking his red face and pulling his tentacles back into his hoodie as he brushed past the others in a rush to leave the kitchen. Unfortunately, two steps into the hallway revealed he wouldn't go unnoticed.

"What's all the commotion?" Professor Xavier asked as he and Ororo approached. "Arial?"

He spared them a quick glance before charging up the stairs to his room, not slowing until he had slammed shut and locked the door behind him.

* * *

><p>It was still several hours before the others arrived back at the mansion from school, and Arial spent them in silence, either laying on his back surveying the ceiling and brooding, or curling up, not completely sleeping but not totally conscious either. It was a bad dream. The whole day was just a bad dream, it just had to be. As time passed, he was vaguely aware of different people coming to his door and trying to talk to him. The first had been Ashton, who waited patiently, then finally left, saying gentle words of comfort. Very shortly afterward Bambi had rapidly thumped his chubby hands on the door while Ororo tried to coax Arial to answer. Then there had been a long time in between where nothing had happened, and when the first tiny knocks had sounded, he almost answered. A tiny, soft voice had tried talking to him, but he could barely make out any words. Tiras, he deduced. Almost seconds after she'd fallen totally silent, Evan was outside his door, chastising him and threatening to spike the door down. This was backed up very quickly by an angry Scott, and then shot down by a rather concerned Jean and Chase.<p>

And through it all, Arial said nothing, keeping his mouth clamped shut as he lost himself deeper and deeper in his chaotic swirl of emotions. He knew he'd have to explain the whole thing to them all eventually, but until then he simply wanted to be left alone. The professor would send for him when it was time, he was positive of it.

At one point he sat up and reached for his sketchbook almost mechanically, only to remember he didn't have his backpack with him. In that same moment, there was a hesitant knock on his door. Biting down a double curse, he flung himself off his bed, crossed the room and unlocked the door, jerking it open violently.

"Vhat?" he demanded in a sharp growl.

The person who'd been knocking flinched back as though struck, and Arial's words failed him. This knocker was a boy only slightly older than him, with mottled translucent skin and large, frightened eyes that peered at him from under a thick hood. This then, had to be Yarin, who'd purposely avoided contact with the other mutants since arriving, refusing to come out of his room when too many of the others could see him. For a moment, Arial puzzled over what in the world Yarin's mutation could be. He seemed perfectly normal beyond having a possibly rare skin condition.

"I…Th-the Professor asked me to return this to you…" he said tentatively, handing out Arial's backpack. And yet…he was shielding his face with his hands. He couldn't possibly also have super-speed.

And then Arial saw it.

Yarin had four arms.

"_Danke schön_…" Arial responded, accepting the backpack. "I am sorry if I startled you…I am having a very bad day…"

"Don't worry about it." Yarin replied, shaking his head. "I'm…I'm also supposed to tell you that you're wanted in the den."

Arial's face grew grim and he tossed the backpack on his bed, stepping out into the hallway. "I'm not surprised. I have explaining to do."

"Okay…If that's all…" Yarin said quietly, starting to edge away. Arial paused and met the other boy's eyes, feeling something inside him soften.

"You can come if you vant. I'm guessing that everyone vill be there anyvay." he offered kindly.

"I…I don't know…" Yarin answered, twiddling the thumbs on one set of hands while spreading the other in a helpless shrug. "I'm not exactly able to blend in with other people, even mutants, sometimes."

Arial paused for a moment, then pushed his tentacles out of his hoodie, letting the muscles stretch and undulate after their stiff confinement.

"Neither am I." he said with a grin, watching the other boy's eyes grow to the size of dinner plates. Then, with a sigh of frustration, he turned and began to head downstairs, ready to face the music and not bothering to see if Yarin was going to accept his invitation or not.

* * *

><p>Across Bayville, two security guards for the aquarium were filling out their report before their replacements arrived to relieve them of their shift. Or rather, they were trying to, having gotten halfway before pausing.<p>

"…What do you say we watch it again?" said one.

"Rick, it doesn't matter how many times we watch it," replied the other, "It ain't gonna change a thing."

But they rewound the recording anyway, replaying the scene above the octopus tank. God alone knew why there were no cameras positioned in the observation room, but it didn't matter in this case. They watched as the scene unfolded again, as the bizarre, inexplicable phenomena caused all the octopi to shift and crowd around the observation windows, blocking out the view of any possible visitors that may have been watching them. From that perspective, it probably wouldn't have mattered; the patrons wouldn't have noticed anything odd beyond all the octopi suddenly swarming around for a photo-op. But from an overhead view on the inside…

"Sweet mother of God…" Rick said, not for the last time.

"Told you…we're not going to be able to just explain this one." said the other, whose name was Dewey.

There was a long pause as they watched the video, then shook their heads and scribbled down the last few lines of their reports. They rose, ready to leave, when Rick paused, looking thoughtful.

"I dunno, Dee. What if it's mutants?"

Dewey started to open his mouth to object, then stopped. Rick always had a mutant conspiracy theory or two he was too willing to share if he got bored, but given what they'd watched occur, he couldn't completely write his coworker's suggestion off as hokum.

"Maybe, Rick. Maybe."

* * *

><p>Professor Xavier studied the fidgeting German boy carefully after the room had fallen silent. He'd already gotten the same story from the other teenagers, with small variances brought about by alternative perspectives, but hearing the confession from the horse's mouth left him feeling deeply unsettled.<p>

"I don't believe I need to impress upon you, Arial, my severe disappointment in your actions." he stated in a carefully controlled tone after a time, and Arial nodded dully. "I don't wish to hear of you fighting with Pietro or any of his friends again."

"But Professor!" Chase objected, "Pietro was beating on Arial! He's got to be able to defend himself!"

"Defending himself is one thing; losing control of his temper and allowing his emotions to drive him to threaten another's life is something else entirely." Xavier raised his voice a notch, knowing all the children would need the point driven home. "And I expect Arial to know the difference between the two."

"Yes, sir." Arial murmured.

"But this isn't the first instance of the surfacing of your temper, is it?" the professor asked, before pointedly looking at Scott and Jean. "Some of you have been wearing your concerns about this on your sleeves. I believe this stems from circumstances in Arial's past which he may still be angry about. Would I be incorrect, Arial?"

He jerked back as though stung, blinking in shock. For a long time he was tongue-tied, unable to respond, then finally he rocked back and began to laugh mirthlessly.

"I might as vell tell you now. I don't know vhen vould be another good time for the story."

At once all the younger mutants leaned forward, Ororo and Logan stood straighter, more alert, and the professor nodded his consent. Arial leaned completely back in his chair and shut his eyes as though searching his memories.

"Vhere to begin…? I vas born vith the X-gene, but it vas dormant for a long time, like vith most of you. None of the rest of my family vere mutants, not that I knew of, anyvay. _Mein Vati_…my father…he is a scientist. He vas vorking on a project for the military…trying to find a vay to help soldiers who lose limbs in service. Vell, finally, he came vith good idea. He _und _his partner created a mutagen formula that, vhen coupled vith DNA from animals vith regenerative capabilities, could be given to test subject to use to regrow limbs. It vas brilliant idea, incredible even.

"But vhen they presented it to their superiors _und_ board of government supervisors vith request for use of human test subjects, it vas shot down. Too risky, they said, vith no guarantee of…adverse side effects. They also said that if _Vati_ couldn't come up vith better solution, they vere closing project."

He paused, taking a long, deep rattling breath, and Chase spoke up.

"I'm guessing your old man didn't take that news too well." she remarked.

Arial shook his head slowly without opening his eyes.

"So what happened? I _know_ that's not the end of it." Rogue jumped in.

"Cut him some slack, girls!" Evan snapped, "He's getting to it!"

"_Ja, Fraulein_ Chase is right," Arial's voice came out a great deal softer than before, "_Vati_ got funny after that, _und_ I don't mean ha-ha funny, either. He started spending more _und_ more time in lab. _Mutti und_ I hardly ever saw him. Then one day I come home from school to find _Mutti _is missing. I started to get scared but _Vati _vas out in kitchen, vandering through the house. He told me she vent to the town, vas out running errands. I didn't know vhat I thought, but I just vent to _mein_ room. I don't remember laying down to take nap, but I must have, because something voke me up."

His blue eyes flicked open for a moment, but his entire audience knew it would be pointless to get his attention: his eyes were glassy, misted over. The eyes of a person lost in a memory they couldn't escape. He took another deep breath before continuing.

"I don't know vhat made me do it, vhy I left the room. God, intuition, a sound, I don't know. I just remember valking like in my dreams, to the studio vhere _Mutti _alvays painted. It vas her favorite part of the house…maybe that's vhy I vent to it."

Arial shut his eyes again, his cherubic face tightening as though in pain or rage.

"_Mutti_ vas crying…_und_ bleeding…_Vati_ could not get government to give him a villing test subject for his mutagen experiment, so he used the next best thing…" he growled, his nails digging into the arms of the chair, tips of his tentacles curling tightly, "She didn't vant it…but she had little choice. There is no stopping _mein_ father once he has decided something. So _Mutti_ did the next best thing she could. After all, the balcony vas right there…"

"Arial, I'm…I'm sorry…" Kitty spoke up, starting to reach out to him before seeming to think better of it and letting her hand fall back to her side. He only shook his head more vigorously.

"_Nein_…_Mutti_ apologized to me before she jumped…Ve found her body a day later. After the funeral, _Vati _changed completely. He almost vanished from my life. I never saw him during the day, _und_ I vas lucky if I saw him before I vent to bed at night," he replied, "Then…one morning I voke up in his lab. I had no idea vhat vas going on…I'm afraid that is vhere my memory starts to get blurry. Until I vas allowed to use the restroom…That's vhen I saw these."

A gentle undulation rippled through his tentacles as he shrugged his shoulders, and they probed the air timidly.

"Sick…" Evan murmured.

"He would do that to his own son?" Scott said in disbelief, and at this, Arial opened his eyes, a grim smile coming over his face as he started to chuckle coldly.

"His own son?" he barked, "Blood doesn't matter to _Vati_. Not any more. Not after _Mutti_ took her own life. I knew _Vati_ had died on the inside vhen I became to him nothing beyond 'Specimen Number 4.'"

* * *

><p>Some time shortly after their conversation with Arial had drawn to a close and a dark blanket of stars rested over the city, there was a death just outside the city limits. An older, portly employee at a gas station overlooked by a water tower was walking around the perimeter of the station, preparing to lock up for his shift, when he heard a clatter. It sounded like it was coming from behind the station, and he frowned. Hopefully it was just a cat, but there were some teenage kids that he often had to chase away during the cloudier days. They seemed to get a kick out of sneaking out to the water tower and smoking on its platform, or stealing some of the inventory. He wouldn't put it past them to start trying the same thing at night, so he went back, pulling the flashlight off his belt and preparing to call the cops.<p>

At the age of 46, his eyesight was going bad, but he didn't need to turn the flashlight on to see the figure standing on the tower platform. He gnashed his teeth as he started toward the bottom rungs of the ladder. Stupid little punks were starting to get too bold for their own good, and tonight it was going to cost them. Up he did climb, hand over hand, huffing and puffing with the effort. Then, whatever the kid had been doing to make noise, they stopped. They'd heard him coming.

"Alright, Skippy," he snapped, "This is the last time you dumb teens are going to smoke pot up here like we're back in the sixties."

" 'Skippy?'" inquired a voice as cold as ice and smooth as silk, faint hints of a German accent tinting its consonants, "That's a new one. Didn't expect anyone would come up to find me here. Perhaps you can help me with my search, _Amerikanische Mensch_."

Reaching the top of the ladder and climbing onto the platform, the man froze, his eyes going wide as the color drained from his skin. The flashlight shook in his hand as he broke out in a cold sweat, trapped in the gaze of a pair of crimson eyes. This was not one of the adolescents that constantly harassed the gas station; they'd all been perfectly human.

The creature grinned, the corners of its mouth literally reaching up to the large, goblin-like ears that flared up from either side of its head, revealing a wicked, gleaming set of teeth that looked designed for ripping apart flesh.

"Y-y-you shouldn't b-be here…" the man stammered, taking a step back, wobbling dangerously on the platform, his weight working against him.

"Oh, come now," the monster cooed tenderly, blinking slowly, "It only hurts for a little moment. And you'll be assisting a good cause. _Two_ good causes, come to think of it. My stomach _is _beginning to feel a bit conclave. You should take pride in it; your last moments will be spent doing a good deed."

The man had no time to react to the long, fleshy tendrils that snaked around behind him and flung him into the creature's terrifying embrace. His scream rent the night hair, a hair-raising, ear-shattering thing that died down to a wet gurgle and ended in a dry gasp. Seconds later a corpse hit the ground below the tower with a crunch. It would be found in the morning by the youngest of the gas station employees, who would call everyone he could think of, and when the forensics would study it, they would find the entire shrunken carcass had been drained dry of all the fluids in the body, with eerie, sickening pockmarked skin stretched over the skeletal frame.

The monster stared at the ground for a moment, seeing nothing it shuffled through the memories absorbed from draining the human's body. Most of the human's brain had been filled with useless thoughts, but the creature found very quickly that the man's mind had a rather well-detailed map of the city just a block away. It inhaled deeply through its snakelike nostrils and gave a rumbling growl of satisfaction.

The fourth specimen was in that city, and he knew it.

He'd known it for close to a week now, but had to wait to act upon the knowledge. The fourth's scent was strong, cloyingly strong, and he could catch just the faintest whiff of it outside the city. But once inside, all the aromas would start to mix, mingle, overlap, and he would be trudging blindly on the hunt.

Luckily the human had known quite a bit of the city, and now a map of memories was starting to form in his mind's eye as he nimbly leapt from the platform, landing silently as a cat. The tentacles that rose from his shoulders lazily stirred and brushed the ground behind him, covering his tracks in the dirt as he walked away from the station, licking his talons idly as he sang into the night.

"Toss and turn deep in your sleep

Little golden boy

The hunt draws to a crescendo

Terrified baby boy.

You ran so far and fast

Hiding among these clever men

But there is no safety from Calibhaan

And blood to be paid for your sin."

If Professor Edmund Lavig were there, he would have thrown a royal tantrum the creature naming itself. But Specimen Number 5 had a deep appreciation of the ironic and already he'd grown too independent and gained too deep a sense of individuality.

He grinned at the thought as he strolled down the road, following its path into Bayville. There was no need to run, not anymore.

The hunt was in Calibhaan's favor, and it always would be.


	7. Chapter 7: The Warped Reflection

A/N: Yeah, I don't really have a whole lot to say with this chapter. Sorry about the wait for it. ^^; Read and review, if you wish. And you ought to know by now from my taglines in the other chapters who all the characters belong to. If you don't, go back and start re-reading.

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><p><span>Chapter 7: The Warped Reflection<span>

Two days passed since the night Arial had told the others of his past. Two days he'd avoided revealing his real mutation, the one his father's experiments had finally coaxed out of dormancy. Two days in which he'd learned about Chase and Todd hiding their mutual crush on each other, and seen Pietro shy away from him in the halls. Two days in which he'd visited Principal Darkholme's class, expecting to be reprimanded, only to end up with a smile, a pat on the back, and approval.

It was a very confusing and slightly miserable two days for the young mutant, who worried that the few new friends he'd made would begin to shun him. Thankfully, it seemed to be rather split down the middle on that end: Jean, Scott, and Rogue didn't really speak to him after the discussion. Neither did Kurt, but he wasn't remotely upset about that. Kitty seemed to waver between the two, torn as to whether she should side with the others, but still attempting to cheer Arial up at the same time. Evan of course, seemed to take up most of the slack the others made, going to extreme lengths to try to talk some of the life back into Arial, who did his best to smile and respond. And of course Tiras still talked to him, albeit in her own unique way. Chase was another odd factor, seeming a bit wary but still trying to remain friendly, though she had different reasons than Kitty; Arial got the distinct feeling that she didn't want him revealing her secret crush to anyone.

_Not like I vould do that anyvay_, he thought to himself in the middle of art class on the second day, _It's not really my business. Plus, if she keeps up the charade, everyone vill find out sooner or later._

After all, it wasn't like he would have been able to keep his tentacles hidden forever. The others would have discovered that little secret eventually.

_Though now that I think about it_, he added as he made a few more soft strokes on the canvas he was using, _I think I vould have done better to tell them on my own, instead of getting in that fight. There vould be more trust if I'd just told them myself._

He paused at that, his brush hanging away from the canvas and wavering in his grip. Was he actually beginning to regret putting Pietro in his place? He shook his head and scowled, annoyed with himself. There was nothing wrong with standing up to a bully. He just shouldn't have let his temper get the better of him in the moment. He began to paint again, allowing his mind to flow into the media, letting the art consume him.

"Arial, what's that you're painting?"

But he didn't hear Tiras's question. His mind moved with the brush, lost in the strokes, the smell, the colors. And had he heard, he probably wouldn't have been able to give her an answer. The image was already within the canvas, and he was merely bringing it out, not stopping to process what his mind's eye was seeing, not thinking of anything except bringing it to light, giving it life for all to see.

He'd begun the shading when his tentacles gave a jerk inside his hoodie, and he realized the instructor was right behind him.

"Very good, Arial! You're a natural! I see a lot of symbolism in this piece, a message for the viewer to interpret at will. But at the same time, you've given it such a feeling of loss and lament, it's difficult to confuse the actual thoughts of the artist when viewed." she said with a bit of a proud smile. "Well done!"

He blinked up at her, shaking the sense of artistic void from his head, then looked again at his canvas. His blue eyes went wide with shock and the color drained from his face as he looked at his work.

He'd painted his mother, floating just below the surface of the water, skin the green-blue of the drowned, her golden curls billowing around her like a cloud, her eyes shut and hands resting clasped over her midriff, as though she were merely sleeping.

"_D-danke schön, Frau_." was all he managed to reply.

Really, what else could he have said?

He stared at the painting a while more, his expression softening in sorrow, studying the detail he'd put into remembering her…until his eyes stopped on her left hand. On her ring finger, in place of her wedding band and engagement stone, he'd somehow painted a tiny black wreath of thorns. A shudder of terror wracked his entire frame.

What did _that_ mean? And why had he painted it?

He put the canvas away and refused to look at it during the remainder of the class.

* * *

><p>The evening was falling over Bayville. The students had returned to their homes a little earlier, when the dying afternoon sun was still in the sky. Kurt was busy rounding up the others for dinner when he found Arial, curled up in a ball on his bed, hugging his knees to his chest and staring at nothing with haunted eyes.<p>

The image shook Kurt to his core.

"Arial?" he asked, and when the blonde boy looked up, he added, "…S-supper."

He received a tiny nod in return, then teleported to the stairs, trying to get the image out of his head. He hated seeing people with that expression, and for a moment, he half-wanted to go back to the room, to coax Arial into a happier mood. But a tiny voice in his head insisted that the other boy would just respond negatively, the same way he'd been responding to Kurt since he first arrived.

The notion, however kind, was a pointless one.

"Hey, Kurt," Kitty called, and he glanced down one of the other halls, catching sight of his friend and Chase, "What's going on?"

"Supper." he answered lamely. "Do any of you know what is going on with Arial?"

Chase bit her lip and Kitty's face took on a puzzled expression. "Is he still grumpy about the other night?" asked the latter.

"No," he replied, "I just went to his room to tell him about supper, and he was hunched up on his bed. He looks like he's trapped in some kind of waking nightmare or something!"

"Hey, what have I told you teeny-bops about gossiping?" came a growl from the bottom of the staircase, and they all jumped. "You say something's up with goldilocks, elf?"

They each turned to face Logan as he began trudging up the stairs, and Kurt slowly nodded.

"_Ja_, he—"

"Save your breath, I heard the whole thing." Logan huffed, climbing the staircase past him and heading toward the hallway, "You three go ahead and hustle your butts down to the kitchen; I'll round up sushi-boy."

The three exchanged a quick glance and a shrug—there was simply no arguing with Wolverine, especially when he spoke like that—and took the staircase at a fast trot. They'd just reached the lower floor when they heard a yelp and a slew of half-intelligible protests in German. Kurt looked up and noticed, with a measure of grim delight, that Wolverine had made more than good on his threat, descending the staircase with a shouting, red-faced Arial swung over one shoulder.

* * *

><p>"All I am saying," Arial said, choosing his words carefully, "Is that it vas rather unnecessary." Most of the color had faded from his face, but his cheeks still remained rather pink with embarrassment.<p>

"Logan was just trying to help, Arial." Kitty threw in, not for the first time.

"Yeah, we didn't want you to miss supper!" Evan exclaimed.

"None of us did." Ashton said firmly, shooting glares at Scott, Jean, and Yana when they pointedly looked away.

"Rubber bouncy snakes?" Bambi asked in excitement, watching Arial expectantly from his high chair, wriggling, ducking and weaving to avoid the food Yana was trying to feed him.

"I vouldn't have missed supper! Kurt already told me about it. I vas coming," Arial protested unconvincingly, "I'm just saying _Herr_ Logan didn't need to sving me around like a sack of potatoes."

"I'll keep that in mind, goldilocks," Wolverine remarked from his spot further down the table, "Next time, I'll just drag you along by your ankles."

"Logan!" Ororo snapped at him, but the older man took no notice as he continued to eat.

"There isn't something bothering you, is there Arial?" Professor Xavier asked from his seat at the head of the table. At once the noise level in the room seemed to drop, and everyone struggled not to stare openly at the boy. For his part, Arial looked up, met the psychic's eyes, then looked solemnly back at the food on his plate.

"_Ja_, there is," he murmured, pushing his food around idly with his fork, "But I don't feeling like bringing it up right now. I'd rather talk to you about it later…in private."

To his surprise, the professor merely raised his eyebrows and nodded, smiling in approval. At last, Arial finally appeared to be opening up a bit.

"Who all is working on homework after supper?" Petrov asked, by way of breaking the silence, and a hesitant Tiras raised her hand.

"I don't have any homework tonight," Evan replied cheerfully.

"I don't either." Arial piped up, and when Evan turned to grin at him, he offered a nervous smile in response.

"I never have homework." Ashton said with a yawn, leaning back in his chair.

"Would any of you like to play cards after supper?" Petrov asked, looking at them each, his gaze hopeful when he turned it on Arial. The blonde boy opened his mouth to answer—

—And all hell broke loose.

In the span of a few seconds, one of the windows exploded inward, shards of glass raining down over the table and the mutants, with a cacophony of sound, the shattering mingling horribly with the sounds of outcries of fear and shock. But the glass brought something with it, something that landed dead-center in the middle of the table, crouching like an animal about to pounce. Everyone jumped back from the table, crying out, Logan extending his claws, Evan his bone spikes, and the thing slowly began to uncurl itself, swinging its head around to face Arial.

It was human-shaped, but a distorted vision of anything remotely human, like something out of an H. P. Lovecraft nightmare. It had no hair, but rather the semblance of fleshy dreadlocks that grew out of its head and stirred like Medusa's snakes. It had no nose either, but a pair of slit-like nostrils where a nose should have been, not unlike artistic renditions of J. K. Rowling's signature villain. The ears that framed either sided of its face were large and ended in sharp points, but flared upward, more like a goblin than some elf. The mouth was normal enough, save for the needle-sharp teeth that it held, and the eyes…

The irises were red, but when Arial looked closer, it wasn't the color that chilled him; it was the shape of the creature's eyes, for he'd seen them before.

Every time he'd looked in a mirror.

The monster straightened out of its crouch, impossibly tall and long-legged, its height accentuated by the table, reminding everyone forcibly of some sort of giant. A black leather pair of pants adorned its legs, torn at the feet above the ankles, and the barest shredded remains of what may have been a cotton shirt hung from its corded arms and draped sadly over a powerful torso. But that wasn't the worst part.

The thing shifted somehow without really moving. The muscular shoulders rolled, and tentacles of flesh and muscle—real human flesh and muscle, not Arial's grafted octopus limbs—began to undulate softly, rippling as though caught in an unnoticed breeze.

It paused long enough to pass a glance over the others, then looked again at Arial, and its mouth broke into a hideous, terrifying smile.

"_Guten Abend_, Arial," it purred in a hissing voice, its eyes going wide with mad glee as the tentacles growing from its shoulders writhed, "See anything familiar?"

"_Nein nein nein nein nein_…" Arial whimpered, tears welling up in his eyes, "This is a dream…it's just a dream…"

One of the monster's tentacles whipped around, faster than any of their eyes could follow, and hoisted Arial off floor, raising him high above the table.

"Professor Lavig has been looking for you," the monster sneered acidly.

It was at this point that Logan roared, leaping from his crouch, his adamantium claws flashing as he drove them deep into the fleshy muscle of the tentacle holding Arial. The monster let out a shriek of pain and lost his grip as he whipped about to meet the new threat, and Arial crashed to the floor.

"RUN!" Evan yelled. Arial didn't need to be told twice, scrambling to his feet and charging through the dining room door, his heart beating so wildly he thought it would burst. His tentacles curled against his back as he ran, quivering in fear, and the mansion began to blur around him, all the hallways blending into a distorted, blurry kaleidoscope of colors, and he heard the monster roar from somewhere behind him, furious at the loss of its prey.

_Vhat IS that thing?_ his thoughts whirled in time with the blurring halls. _If _Vati _sent it…but vhy does it look like…? _Nein, _he couldn't! He vouldn't!_

_"[ARIAL!]"_

He nearly lost his balance from the force of the mental shout, and had to grab onto something nearby—was it a nightstand?—to stay upright.

_Jean?_

"[Head to the Danger Room! Logan showed you where it's located when he gave you the tour, right? Head there, you'll be safe! I'll initiate one of the mission simulations, to see if we can't confuse your…friend.]"

He stumbled as he broke into another run, darting down a hallway. He had no choice but to trust that Jean knew what she was doing, that this plan would work.

"You can't run from me, Arial! I'll find you! I'll catch you! I'll bring you back! It's why Professor Lavig created me in the first place!" he heard the monster shriek.

"YOU LEAVE ARIAL ALONE, YOU BIG BULLY!" screamed a voice he barely recognized, and at once his stomach rose to his chest, his vision spinning as a nauseous wave of vertigo assaulted him. Tiras. Tiras was yelling.

"Keep it up, _fraulein_!" he called back over his shoulder, desperately hoping that his friend's power was enough to stop his father's gruesome creation. But even as his feet took him closer and closer to the Danger Room, his stomach clenched in horror, and somehow he knew, he simply _knew_ that abomination behind him was unstoppable.

"Keep running, Arial!" he heard the shouts from behind, coming from so many mouths he couldn't tell in his confusion who all was yelling it at him. He put on a fresh burst of speed when he saw the hall with the Danger Room, the doors opening to admit him. A brief flicker of hope flared in his chest as he leapt inside, the metallic landscape shimmering and whirring around him—

And suddenly it stopped, reverting to its normal appearance as a loud, alarm klaxon screamed and red lights flared in his eyes.

"_Nein_!" he cried.

"Oh, yes!" purred a rough voice behind him, and a second later he was struck in the small of his back, the air bursting from his lungs in a gasp as a massive weight drove him to the floor. His chest hit first, instinct making him turn his face aside at the last moment, the impact smashing him like a wall of bricks, and he half-worried he may have cracked a rib or two.

"_Scheiβe_!" the monster swore abruptly, and Arial heard a strange whirring sound. A quick glance up showed him mounted guns emerging from the walls and floor panels of the Danger Room. No wonder how it earned its name. Sucking a sharp breath in between his clenched teeth, he used the brief second of shock to break free of the monster, surging from underneath the foot pressed into his back and running away as fast as his feet could carry him, fear-born adrenaline pushing his tiring body past normal limits. But the monster wasn't finished. It let loose a roar of fury and he heard it sprinting behind him, its terrifying shadow growing rapidly, swallowing the hallway as it gained on him. He spun at the last second and darted down another passage, sprinting past several other doorways, and caught brief glimpses of the other mutants running toward him and his pursuer.

"ARIAL!" he heard Ashton yell from somewhere nearby, "GET OUTSIDE!"

His mind raced. They would have the advantage outside; they could surround the monster…but how—

He caught a glimpse outside a window. Somehow he had gotten on a second floor landing, fear wiping details from his mind, and below him, outside, there was a pool.

"The pool…" he murmured.

Safety.

He angled his body, throwing all his weight forward without breaking from his run, bringing his arms up to shield his face, ducking his head as the glass shattered on the impact. He pushed through the deadly fragments, which rained to the concrete below, momentum carrying him further, and for a moment, he seemed to hang in space. Somehow, some part of his brain kept working properly, and he pulled his legs in underneath him, angling them downward. Each second seemed an eternity, as though time slowed down in a way as he fell. And then the shocking cold battered him as he finally hit the water and sank beneath the surface.

_Golden curls sinking slowly through the night…His mother's face, peaceful in spite of a horrid death..._

A wreath of black thorns biting into the skin of her ring finger.

Panic bubbled in Arial's chest, and a second later, a dark shape broke the surface of the water, coming to float next to him, crimson eyes flashing in hate.

He yelped in fear, surging upward, his face breaking free as he sucked in a breath. He shouted, trying to call for help, but one of the monster's flesh-tentacles seized him from behind and yanked him back down, chlorine water filling his mouth. He choked, spitting the water back out and clamping his teeth shut on what precious little oxygen he had left. The creature's talons lunged for his face, but he moved to the side just in time, the tip of his nose barely getting grazed. Something deeper inside him, something primal, something animal, reared up. He couldn't run any more, but he could fight back.

His tentacles ripped free of the fabric on his shoulders and he thrust them forward, aiming for the monster's face. The red eyes widened in surprise and it howled as the octopus tentacles stung and cut through its cheek. Arial drew his tentacles back, preparing for another strike, but then he began to rise to the surface against his will. He broke free of the water, gasping and dripping wet, and continued to rise until he was hovering in the air.

"_Was ist dies_?" he yelped, and looked about wildly, finding Jean standing just in front of the shattered window, one hand outstretched toward him, the other pressing against her right temple, like she was nursing a headache, a tight frown forming on her features. Tiras came up right beside her, glaring down at the pool, and shrieked, a sound that rippled and danced on the air, and struck the space beneath Arial, just before the monster's flesh-tentacles, rising from the water, could close on him again. A chill ran down his spine. That had been too close for comfort.

"Arial, look out!" Jean suddenly cried, and he began to plummet toward the water again; she'd lost her telekinetic hold on him. He crashed into the pool again, used to the cold by now, and spun about. The monster seemed to rocket toward him through the water, as though his father had half-designed it to function like a torpedo.

And then a third body plunged into the pool, and Arial nearly yelled again. It was Ashton, his eyes dark with rage and his face set with grim determination. The monster came to an abrupt halt, glancing around to see the new threat, and Ashton closed the distance between them, removing one of his gloves as he swam, gently brushing his fingertips against the skin of the monster's flesh-tentacles. Almost immediately the thing screamed, ducking away from the contact and surging out of the pool as though it had been stung. Ashton fumbled with his glove for a second before swimming over and grabbing beneath one of Arial's arms, then pulled them both to the surface. Coughing and spluttering, Arial shook his sopping mane of curls and turned to the older boy.

"Vhat did you do to him?" he asked.

"Touched him," Ashton shrugged, "Guess he didn't like it."

"Coward." came the hiss.

Arial spun, turning to face the creature as it glared at him, pressed against a wall and far too dry for something that just emerged from water, its red eyes glinting maliciously.

"Coward," the monster repeated. "Hiding behind the powers of stronger mutants. Father was right. You're pathetic."

Anger boiled in Arial's stomach and he seized the bars of a nearby ladder, pulling himself up out of the pool. "Oh? Then vhat are you supposed to be, _Herr_ Monster?"

It smiled cruelly, its tongue flicking over needle-sharp teeth, like it savored the information. "I'm you, big brother. I'm you…_perfected_."

A chill ran through the blonde boy at the words. Somewhere in the back of his mind, a small voice was telling him his worst fear had been confirmed. He didn't know what to say, what to do. This…thing was him? Perfected? Certainly Edmund Lavig had enhanced it to be exceptionally powerful. But a perfect him? He raised a hand, pointing a shaking finger at the horror before him, and could only think to say—

"You have no nose."

The crimson eyes popped wide open with shock, twitching slightly, then narrowed in outrage.

"You son of a BITCH!" the monster screamed, pouncing for him, "I'm going to KILL YOU!"

Arial ran, desperate to put some space between them, but the monster was quicker and drove him painfully to the concrete anyway. He heard voices shouting his name, and realized the others had somehow arrived to help. He blinked against the pain, looking around to try to spot Ashton, but a powerful sweeping blow from the monster's tentacles batted the older boy aside.

"He's MINE!" the creature yelled, rolling Arial onto his back. The talons raised high into the air, glinting in the faint light, and the monster sneered.

"Time to die, big brother." it purred.

"Aaaaarrrrrrriiiiii!"

Time seemed to stop as terror racked Arial's chest.

"_Nein_…" he croaked in dismay.

"BAMBI!" Yana screamed.

The mutant toddler came into view, his cheeks puffed out in anger, and he headbutted the monster with his antlers, making it take a step back, hissing in pain.

"Bully!" Bambi yelled, plopping down onto his diapered bottom next to Arial. The creature snarled, red eyes locking onto the child, his tentacles arching high. Bambi's eyes widened and his lower lip began to quiver with a tiny sob. The monster reached for the toddler—

And was smacked in the side promptly with one of the folding deck chairs as Yana swung at him, yelling furiously in Russian.

"Vhat in the vorld…?" Arial murmured, pushing himself up onto his elbows.

"OW! Hey, watch it with the—OWW! _Jesus_, lady! YOW! _OW OW OW OW OW_!"

"YOU!" Yana screamed, punctuating each word with a smack from the folding chair, "LEAVE! BABY! ALONE!"

"OWW! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Knock it off with the chair already!" the monster whimpered, curling into a tight ball on the ground, desperately trying to fend off any further blows. Its hair tendrils writhed in pain and a sliver of light bounced off them, catching Arial's eye. Sudden realization dawned on him.

"Yana!" he yelled. "I think there's a control chip on him!"

"What?" she asked, looking up and smacking the creature again for good measure.

"A metal ring!" Arial yelled. "_Vati_ uses them to control his specimens! I think it's in his flesh-hair! Get it off!"

Yana spun, hesitated, then yanked at the creature's head. It gave one last howl of pained protest, then something pulled free in a tiny spray of blood and Yana hefted a dark metal ring into the air.

"Bracelet!" Bambi giggled, clapping his pudgy hands.

"Hurts…" the monster whimpered. Blinking, Arial sat up, vaguely aware of the others rushing toward him, coming to his side, and stared at the monster. It shuddered, child-like squeaks emanating from what could have passed for a 21-year-old man, and looked up at him, the crimson light gone.

"Calibhaan hurts…" it whispered.

But he couldn't hear its child's plea. He could only see his own eyes—his own blue, wide eyes, streaming with tears—staring out at him from that terrifying face.

His vision spun and he pitched forward, the world swallowed up by darkness.


	8. Chapter 8: Calibhaan

A/N: Sorry it took so long to finish such a short chapter. But here it is! I'm excited, as this means after this chapter, there are only two left for me to write to complete this fanfic! 3 Hope you guys enjoy this!

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><p><span>Chapter 8: Calibhaan<span>

The ring sat in the middle of the coffee table, surrounded by the eyes of all present, sitting around the little table and studying the device intently. Carefully, Professor Xavier reached for it and plucked it off the surface, holding it up to eye level and turning it over in his fingers. It was larger than a typical ring worn on a finger; it could have passed easily for some sort of bracelet, albeit a very unusual, high-tech one. Xavier frowned.

"You say this was the source of the trouble, Arial?" he asked.

"_Ja_," the blonde boy answered without hesitation, "I remember seeing them in _Vati_'s laboratory; he had an assistant develop them. I am not totally sure how they function, but these devices are used to force any of the test subjects into submission. The effectiveness is judged by how close the device is to the specimen's brain, I think."

"So essentially, would that mean that if a specimen wore the ring anywhere lower on their person, it would be easier to resist a command?" Ororo prompted as the professor handed the ring to her for a better look.

"_Steif_," Arial confirmed with a grim nod, "Though I vould not put it past _mein Vater _to have found a vay to use the rings as torture devices if they had to be put lower, in order to ensure minimum _Widerstand_."

"But then that means, since this ring was practically in those peachy dreadlocks," Logan murmured darkly, snatching it from Ororo and scowling, "That squid-face here had next to no resistance at all."

At this, all eyes turned to Calibhaan, who was curled into a tight ball on the end of the couch and shivering violently. His large, frightened blue eyes darted between them all, as though trying to decide who was the biggest threat. His gaze turned upon Arial, who looked away almost immediately, wanting nothing more than to deny the creature's existence.

"I have a name, you know." Calibhaan squeaked, looking decidedly affronted.

"Yes," Xavier said slowly, "You said your name is…Calibhaan?"

The gruesome creature nodded his head vigorously. "I chose it. I like the irony of it." He replied, his eyes locking onto Arial again. The professor followed his gaze, his expression unsettled.

"And what exactly is your connection to Arial?" he asked, and at once everyone seemed to lean forward, as though unable to resist hearing the truth. Even Arial met Calibhaan's eyes, waiting expectantly.

"From the play, "The Tempest," by William Shakespeare," Calibhaan began, "That's why I picked my name. Because he is Arial, so I am Calibhaan. Equal and opposite. I was made for that purpose. Professor Lavig would hate that I picked a name; it means I have too much independence, too much free will. But it's his own fault, you see. He made me from Arial."

A sickening feeling plunged into the blonde boy's gut.

"He took samples of Arial's blood, his skin, tissue and muscle, everything. Before and after he started using him as a test subject. But he kept saying Arial's tentacles were crude, that the work is crude, even to the naked eye."

Arial's jaw tightened as the monster spoke, and out of reflex, he reached up to stroke one of his tentacles.

"That's why he made me from those DNA samples he had. He said he was improving the job. Perfecting his work. I was made to be the perfect specimen, the perfect Arial…from Arial himself."

At this, he could no longer hold the stare and looked away, trying to ignore the stares of horror that were slowly turning to him.

"I have some of Arial's memories," Calibhaan said softly, "And some of the professor's. But mostly I had information fed into my brain as it was developing. Professor Lavig saw to that. He said I've got sponge-like qualities."

"Sponge?" Logan echoed.

"Because I absorb." Calibhaan replied with a nod. "I can siphon moisture out of anything. My initial design is meant to feed off humans…" He paused and choked, looking slightly horrified with himself, "To suck all the water, the blood, the marrow from them. I don't have to, however. I can subside on anything with moisture in it. I'm meant to be Arial's equal opposite. And my prime directive is…was…taking Arial back to Professor Lavig at any cost, dead or alive."

A hush fell over the room, and the young X-Men worriedly looked back and forth between themselves, Arial, and Calibhaan. Finally, as if to break the silence as much as anything else, Yana addressed Calibhaan, having initially gotten over her scare and sitting beside him kindly.

"So…you have been looking for Arial a long time?"

Calibhaan turned his large blue eyes toward her, his ears twitching slightly. "Not really." he answered, offering her a smile.

"How long have you been tracking him down then?" Scott asked, crossing his arms.

"Yeah, if you've not been looking for him too long…" Chase added, trailing off.

"Since I was born." Calibhaan said with a shrug.

"Since you were _born_?" Rogue asked incredulously.

"I wasn't born like normal humans," Calibhaan said, shaking his head slowly, "Not in the sense you might think of. And my growth was accelerated, so I'm like this. It was all part of our _Vati_'s intent. But I have not been alive very long at all."

"Then when were you born, Calibhaan?" Xavier asked gently, as Yana gave the monster mutant a hesitant, pitying hug.

"Oh, I know that!" Calibhaan said with a large smile, his ears twitching eagerly, "Three months, two weeks, four days, and sixteen hours ago!"

A stunned silence fell over them, then Kurt giggled a moment later, pointing at Yana hugging Calibhaan.

"D-does that mean," he managed to get out between laughs, "Th-that in—hee hee—that in Soviet Russia, the cradle robs you?"

A second later his face slammed against the coffee table and voices cried out in shock.

"THAT IS NOT FUNNY, YOU _BLAU DUMMKOPF_!" Arial roared, "VE ALL ALMOST GET KILLED BY THIS FREAK MY FATHER SENT AFTER ME, _UND_ ALL YOU CAN THINK TO DO IS LAUGH AT YANA SHOWING HIM KINDNESS?" He tangled his fingers in Kurt's hair and slammed his head against the coffee table again, "YOU! ARE! AN! INCONSIDERATE! FOOL!"

"_ARIAL_!" Xavier shouted, "Stop it this instant!"

The blonde mutant glared up at him, and in that moment of pause, Kurt took the opportunity to teleport, reappearing on the far end of the room, looking furious behind the tears of pain rolling down his cheeks.

"It is not MY fault you are a distrusting little crybaby who can't laugh at a joke!" he snapped back, his tail lashing the air angrily.

"Kurt!" Ororo exclaimed, but the blue boy ignored her.

"Since you got here, you've had some sort of problem with me, Lavig!"  
>"Maybe if you had a little more respect for others, Vagner, I vouldn't be so hostile!"<p>

"Oh yeah? I'm betting it runs in the family. First your crazy father and now we have your homicidal baby brother! Why wouldn't you be violent, too?"

"SHUT YOUR _VERDAMMT_ MOUTH!" Arial screamed, lunging too fast for Kurt to teleport to safety. The two boys went down with inhuman snarls in a blur of fists, tail and tentacles, ripping and tearing at each other like animals. But the fight was over in seconds. Logan surged toward them, reaching into the fray, yanking them apart and giving them a head-rattling shake.

"Eesh…" Calibhaan groaned from his seat on the couch.

"Of all the ill behavior…!" Xavier exhaled tensely, turning a sharp gaze on the two boys as Logan brought them forward. "I cannot even find words to express my anger and disappointment with you both right now."

The two immediately pointed at each other, and started to protest. "But he—"

"_No_." Xavier said firmly, making all the teenagers present flinch back. "There is no excusing your behavior just now. Not either of you."

Kurt hung his head, the guilt and shame sinking in at last, but Arial tilted his chin defiantly, his cheeks going red with anger again.

"Kurt, I would have hoped that by now you would be a bit more sensitive to the feelings of everyone present," the professor remarked, and the blue boy flinched again, his tail drooping dejectedly.

"…You're right, Professor. I…I need to watch my mouth…"

"And Arial," Xavier's voice went just a touch softer, but his gaze if anything, only grew more firm. "I can understand your feelings of fear and pain, but violence is never the solution to these problems."

The blonde boy said nothing, but averted his gaze, glaring at the floor, and the color began to fade from his cheekbones.

"Well Prof, you decide on the consequences for these two yet? Because I've got a couple of ideas." Logan said, raising an eyebrow, and Xavier sighed.

"Whatever you and Ororo agree is best." he answered, leaving Logan looking distinctly disappointed. Ororo came to his side, prying his grip off of Kurt and Arial, and the blonde boy darted at once, charging from the room to head to the refuge of his own.

"Arial!" several voices yelled after him, but he barely heard.

The storm of rage he kept in his heart was beginning to surface again.

* * *

><p>AN: You ought to know by now which OCs belong to which of my friends from dA. If not, check out my deviantart account (my username is Yoruhoshi,) and find Tempest Fury on there. I credit each of the OCs used to their individual creators in my artist's comments.


	9. Chapter 9: The Offer

A/N: So, after it took me forever and a day to finish this chapter, here is chapter 9! Only one more chapter, then I can start on the sequel. Again, credit to the owners of each OC appearing in this fanfic is given in my artist's comments on this chapter on deviantArt. Please R&R if you so please!

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 9: The Offer<span>

Three more days passed after Arial's fist-fight with Kurt, and still he refused to leave his room. Professor Xavier had insisted that food be taken up to Arial, and the younger mutants all assumed he had to be eating it, for they would always find the dishes sometime later, empty and sitting outside Arial's door. Some of them argued that Arial was leaving his room, if only to use the toilet, but no one saw him regardless. They each attempted to approach the door and coax him out from his room, but the effort was in vain. At the very least, Arial would gently ask the speaker to leave him alone, a response Yarin, Evan, Tiras, Yana, and Ashton all said they received. But at the worst, Arial would begin shouting angrily in unintelligible German (the sort of things that both Calibhaan and Kurt refused to attempt translating,) and several objects would smash into the door from behind. Eventually, they backed down, all agreeing the matter was one best left to the Professor and Ororo.

"Ya know, you still need to apologize to him, elf." Logan said on the third day (Saturday, as it happened,) at breakfast, doing his best to hold a squirming Bambi and eat his bacon before the toddler could snatch it away. Kurt looked up in alarm and irritation.

"What? Why?" he protested.

"Logan's got a point, Kurt," Kitty spoke up, pouring herself a bowl of cereal, "After all, you're the one who upset him."

"Yeah, okay, sure," he muttered, "I was rude the other night, but he's been stand-offish ever since he got here!"

"Kurt, no offense, but you do kind of tend to rub people the wrong way." Scott added.

"Quit sugar-coating it, Lieutenant Jock-Strap." Ashton snapped. "Smurf, you're inconsiderate. Ever think of it that way?"

"Smurf," Logan murmured to himself, raising an eyebrow, "That might even be better than 'elf.'"

"What does that have to do with anything?" Kurt snapped back.

"You probably weren't thinkin' too hard about how ya came off to Arial," Rogue chimed in, rummaging in the fridge for the orange juice, "And if I know anything, it's that if you let things build up over time, you'll explode sooner or later."

At this, Logan gave her an approving smile and nod, and Bambi made another grab at the bacon.

"But then part of it is still Arial's fault," Jean argued, "He could have just told Kurt that—"

"Jean, you aren't going to get him to admit that while he's still angry." Logan said patiently, initiating tug-o-war with the mutant toddler for a particularly large piece of bacon. "The best move right now would be for the elf to admit what he did wrong and apologize."

There was a pause before a brief murmur of consent rose up around the table. Kurt glanced around at them all before letting loose a ragged sigh.

"Oh, all right! _Fine_. I don't think he's going to listen, though." he muttered before vanishing in a wink of space. The others all glanced at one another, each of them silently sending out hopes of good luck to their fuzzy blue friend. He'd need them.

Well, almost each one of them.

"Smurf…or elf? Elf…or smurf?" Logan muttered to himself thoughtfully before glancing at Bambi. "Whaddya think, small fry?"

"Dumb-dumb!" the toddler suggested happily.

"…ahh, okay! You win props for that one." he growled happily, pouring the tiny mutant a little bowl of applesauce.

But as the day wore on, it became quite clear that Kurt's skepticism was well-founded. He had gone to speak to Arial, only to discover the blonde boy wasn't in his room, and wound up spending the better portion of his morning teleporting all over the mansion and its grounds in an attempt to find him. Before long, he began to get desperate, and asked some of the others to help him. Kitty, Chase, and Tiras took to searching inside, while Evan, Ashton, and Scott helped outside. Jean stubbornly insisted that they would have better luck if they asked the adults for help, but Kurt had put his foot down on the matter. As he ended up explaining to the older girl, and the Professor when he asked if they would like his assistance, that it was one of those things they should probably solve on their own. Petrov was more than ready to point out that Kurt ought to only search on his own if that were the case, but his logic was quickly silenced by Yana, who dragged her brother off to watch Calibhaan while she tended to Bambi. And Logan and Ororo contented themselves to supervising while the boys searched the grounds, arguing the entire matter pleasantly, like a laid-back, old married couple.

As for Arial, his day was rather rough and hectic as he did his best to hide. His mood had only worsened over the past number of days, and he'd gotten up that morning rather early. He hadn't eaten, but simply climbed up to the roof, huddling behind one of huge heating vents, and sat by himself for a long time, curled up in his hoodie and hugging his knees to his chest. He'd had a moment of panic when Kurt had first teleported onto the roof, but the blue mutant had vanished almost as quickly as he had disappeared, and Arial allowed himself a sigh of relief. Apparently, no one seriously thought of looking for him where he was. And with that, he'd gone back to his quiet brooding, sitting on the roof and allowing some of his darkest thoughts to swirl and stew slowly in his mind.

The sky darkened as the day wore on, threatening rain, and Arial's stomach began grumbling. He couldn't remember when he had last eaten, because he hadn't touched supper the previous night when it was brought to him. Even now, the plate sat down on his nightstand, the food cold but still waiting for him. But he refused to move, even for cold supper. Kurt and at least three of the other guys were still patrolling the grounds for him, and if he budged even a tiny bit, chances were good he'd be spotted. No, better to stay here and cool off, then eventually go back inside and eat.

But he didn't cool off or calm down as he'd hoped.

His thoughts continued to occupy him almost completely, and they only became darker and darker.

Even here he was still a freak. He still caused people problems. His temper was worse than ever. And to make matters worse, no one trusted him.

Not even the few of them he thought were his friends.

And especially not Professor Xavier.

Definitely not the professor.

"It vouldn't surprise me if he thinks I am dangerous." Arial whispered to himself as he heard rumbling in the distance. He looked up and out over what he could see of the city from the rooftop, his mind wandering to and fro as he took in the sights. And then…he moved from his spot, not even consciously aware of what he was doing as his mind continued its downward spiral into an all-consuming darkness.

* * *

><p>It was Petrov who finally spotted Arial.<p>

He had had a rather miserable day of his own, having to constantly duck and weave around the girls, who were searching every nook and cranny of the mansion at least a dozen times over, and were practically plowing through like bulldozers. On top of that, he and Yana would switch off between watching Bambi and Calibhaan, as the monster seemed to have taken a liking to his little sister. More often than not, Petrov insisted on switching back almost immediately, as he didn't trust Calibhaan around his sister in the least, nor was he too keen on the idea of changing Bambi, period. And when he'd finally found some free time in which to work on his homework, Calibhaan wouldn't leave him alone, constantly peering over his shoulder and asking questions nonstop. But at last he somehow managed to find an escape of some sort, and headed for his room, intent on getting a little alone time in.

He didn't get too far down the hall before he saw Yarin, stepping away from Arial's door and looking incredibly guilty.

"What is wrong, Yarin?" Petrov asked, trying to keep his voice kind, as the four-armed mutant was known to scare easily, "If you are trying to look for Arial, I don't think he's in his room."  
>"Oh, I know that…" Yarin answered quietly, fidgeting, "But I'm worried about him. And the emotions that are still hanging around his room…"<p>

Petrov winced sympathetically. He'd almost forgotten that Yarin was an incredibly sensitive empath, and given how much Arial had been brooding, not only were his negative emotions and energy bound to linger in place, but it was probably rather hard for poor Yarin.

"He's so angry, and in so much pain…" Yarin whispered, "And he can barely control all of his feelings from colliding and mixing with one another. I'm…I'm worried he might kill himself…"

Color drained from the Russian boy's face, but he swallowed and attempted to pat the younger mutant on one of his shoulders.

"I don't think you should worry too much," he replied, "I mean, Arial probably isn't that unstable, and the professor—"

His words caught in his throat as his gaze trailed toward one of the windows, and he choked on his thought. Arial was walking across the grounds outside in a trancelike gloom, his darkening aura hanging around him like ominous storm clouds. As Petrov watched his slow strides, Arial's aura gradually went from a dark, dark blue, to a deep, impenetrable black. It froze him in shock and before he could look away, the images came to Petrov's mind.

_Arial, walking down the street by himself, gripping the butterfly razor in his pocket tightly._

_ The inside of an old, run-down church he hadn't seen before._

_ Arial screaming at a crucifix hanging above an alter._

_ The butterfly razor touching the pale skin of his arm—_

Petrov jerked back to present time with a jolt, breaking out in an icy sweat. Yarin was looking at him in outright alarm, and he seized the younger mutant by one of his forearms.

"This is very bad! We need to get Professor Xavier, right away!"

* * *

><p>He walked without knowing where he was heading, with no sense of destination or time, just a simple drive to get…well, somewhere far away from Xavier Institute. The metal sheath of his razor bit into his palm as his grip tightened on it. He didn't want to talk to any of them. He didn't want to see any of them. Didn't want to hear false sympathy or cutting remarks.<p>

He _needed_ to be alone.

He _wanted_ to die.

Both feelings were nothing new. They were old, old desires that were always with him, like an angry, half-healed scar, as familiar as second nature. They ate at him when he was at his lowest, weakest points, pecking like vultures, and now they drove him onward, on toward some unknown place.

Perhaps if he hadn't been so consumed by them, he would have noticed that he was being followed.

* * *

><p>"And you are quite sure of what you saw, Petrov?" Xavier asked worriedly.<p>

The young Russian mutant nodded. "My visions have never been wrong before, Professor. And I must say I'm starting to agree with Yarin's concerns, now that this has happened."

The professor's eyes slid from one young man to the other, and Yarin's eyes stared back, trying to fight down tears. "He's so full of pain," came the soft murmur, "So much anger and despair…And he's kept it contained for so long…"

Xavier sighed, folding his hands and looking to the other students with him. "Someone is going to have to go and talk to him."

"I don't think talking's just going to be enough this time, Charles," Logan remarked, already donning his costume, "We're going to have to make the kid see reason, and we have to get going _now_ if we want to stop him."

"We'll go with you," Kitty said, seizing Chase and Tiras by the arms.

"Us too," Evan added as a quick glance passed between he and Ashton, "Ari's gotta listen to us!"

"Hey, don't forget about us!" Scott stepped forward, when Jean suddenly grabbed his arm, her eyes going wide.

"Has…has anyone seen Kurt?"

"He was here just a second ago…" Chase murmured, her voice trailing off as she and Kitty glanced around the room. Too late they all realized the same thing, Logan swearing as he flew out the door.

"Oh no…" Petrov groaned, and his eyes became unfocused with another vision, his face turning white as a sheet.

* * *

><p>The second set of double doors led directly into the church sanctuary, opening up to aisles of pew after pew until at last the floor rose up to a platform with an altar, a podium, choir seats, an instrumental stage, a projector screen, a covered lower area, and a huge cross that hung on the farthest wall, complete with the Crucifix, hanging for all to see. When Kurt teleported into the church, he found himself in some higher room behind all the pews, with a projector, a mixing table, some computers, and many other miscellaneous pieces of equipment no doubt used to help with the worship portion of a Sunday service. The church was old and empty, that much he could tell, and he was surprised to find that no one was holding some kind of Saturday night meeting.<p>

"Pretty convenient," he muttered, thinking maybe Arial had come to the place for that purpose, but even he couldn't deny there was something about the old building in the growing twilight that gave him the creeps. He fought down a shudder and poked his head out of the window frame, trying to get a better look at Arial. The blonde boy was walking down the aisle between the rows of pews slowly, his gaze fixed squarely on the Crucifix as he slid his butterfly razor out of his pocket. A feeling of dread started to grow in the pit of Kurt's stomach, but he found himself unable to move as he watched.

"_Mein Gott_…" Arial's soft, angry voice carried through the empty worship hall, reverberating several times off the high walls, "You have forsaken me."

The accusation rang in Kurt's ears so powerfully he almost missed the sound of the butterfly razor sliding open.

"I do not know vhat I did to deserve Your anger. Vas it because I ran avay from _mein Vater_? Did I break Your commandment in doing so?"

Arial approached the steps leading up to the platform, each footfall the heavy, ominous thud of a gong's death toll.

"Because I do not think a child should honor their parents vhen they become nothing but a guinea pig to torture _und_ abuse."

He hoisted the razor above his head, defiance radiating from him in waves.

"If You command children to honor their parents, You should command the parents to honor their children. Not this antiquated, corrupted commandment that everyone takes advantage of vithout balance. Vile things come of it, _und_ You vatch it happen!" he snarled angrily, before erupting into a furious scream, "You vatched it happen to me! You _let _it happen! Taking avay _mein Muter_ vas not enough for You, vas it? _NEIN_! Arial had to be punished!"

"…punished! ….punished! …punished!" the walls echoed.

Kurt could only watch as Arial stood there, trembling with rage before the image of Christ hanging from the cross. Mixed emotions toiled and fought inside the young blue mutant. He knew how Arial felt, in a way. He hadn't quite gone through the same abuse the blonde boy had, but he knew what it was like to feel abandoned by his God. To feel the one entity who everyone always said would protect and watch over him had suddenly turned His face away from his troubles. But horror mingled with that sympathy, for Kurt knew on entering the Institute and making friends that his previous doubts and fears were just that; doubts and fears without any truth behind them.

"Vhy…? Vhatever did I do…?" Arial whimpered, some of his rage diminishing into tears. "Vas it because I vas born…unnatural? Am I cursed? Is this vhy You have abandoned me?"

Kurt hesitated, torn by the despair he heard in the other boy's voice, the same despair that had once plagued him for so long in secret. He had to make Arial listen to reason. If he could only think of how…

"Or is it because I'm not like one of Your disciples, accepting all their misfortune happily? _Verzeihung_…but I am not them. I'm barely even human any more." Arial murmured, pulling down on a sleeve, exposing a pale arm. He lowered the edge of the razor, pressing it gently against his forearm. "_Und_ I am a disappointment. To You _und_ to everyone. So I must be punished for it."

Kurt surged to his feet, ready to teleport down there and wrest the razor from the other mutant, even if he got cut and bloodied in the process, but a new voice echoing through the chapel made his blood go cold.

"Aww, you're already dealing out punishment, Sunshine? Save some fun for us!"

Pietro.

Arial spun on the spot, lowering the razor, rampant hatred blazing in his eyes. "YOU! Vhy can't you ever leave me _ALONE_?"

What happened next was too fast for Quicksilver and the rest of the Brotherhood to prevent, and it froze Kurt on the spot.

The covered segment of the raised floor _erupted_, water exploding from the baptism pool like a geyser. And it didn't just stop there; it kept rising, forming an inverted umbrella shape as each drop rose toward the high ceiling, like rain that was flowing back into the sky. The voices of the Brotherhood rose in shouts of alarm, and out of the net shot orbs of water that assaulted them, turning shouts of alarm into cries of fear.

Water.

Arial could control water.

Something in Kurt's mind shot back to their discussion of Professor Lavig. Something Arial had said about the unnatural mutation of his tentacles being a side effect of the animal DNA being compatible with his original, dormant mutation.

Arial unleashed a snarl, shoulder tentacles ripping out of his hoodie, and he charged. A second later, Kurt heard Pietro scream, and his mind was made up. He teleported down into the fray just in time to see the butterfly razor rise above Arial's blonde head, about to arch down.

"Arial, stop!" he shouted, reaching out with an arm helplessly.

The other boy whipped around, glaring over his shoulder with a growl as his grip on Pietro tightened. "_Und_ you! I'm not sure vhich of you I hate _more_: the loudmouthed bully or the loudmouthed _DUMMKOPF_!"

Water slammed into Kurt from behind with the force of a battering ram, knocking the blue boy off his feet and sending him flying into one of the pews. Mind too overcome with shock to teleport, Kurt crashed into the bench and went tumbling head over heels, positive he heard one of his ribs crack. He struggled to get to his feet with a groan, but had to roll away under more rows of the pews as Fred crashed around haphazardly, trying to avoid the liquid missiles that kept targeting him. When he got a good look around, Kurt could see the other Brotherhood mutants were no better off: Todd was hopping around frantically, just managing to avoid most of the water, but he was still sopping wet already, and Lance could barely concentrate enough to cause even a small tremor as one water sphere kept reforming rapidly and smacking him in the face.

But Kurt lingered a second too long, and Arial spotted him, the blade of the razor barely glinting in the darkening room.

And then, quite unexpectedly, the blade simply flew out of his hand and shot away toward the podium.

"That is quite enough. It won't do to harm your fellow mutants for the sins inflicted upon you by humans, my young friend."

Arial spun around, blinking through the tears that were fast receding from his eyes.

A figure approached them from the steps of the raised floor, silent as a ghost and calm as deep night. A cape the deep purple of wine fluttered about his red-and-black armored form, and he held the razor aloft in a hand before his face, which was hidden in the shadows cast by his helmet. Between the pews, Kurt's heart hammered in fear, and the brutal assault of the water ceased as Arial watched the figure curiously.

"Who are you?" he asked as Pietro slipped from his hold.

"Someone who can help you."

* * *

><p>They arrived to the church to find the doors shut and locked, and Wolverine was more than ready to break them down in order to stop Arial from self-mutilation. Storm had kept the more level head however, insisting the students split up and check the other exits and side doors before they did anything reckless. But they all quickly regrouped, grim expressions on their faces.<p>

"Anything?" Cyclops asked the others.

"Nothing."

"Nada."

"Zilch."

"Locked."

"Locked and probably barred, too."

Wolverine loosed an angry growl and shot Storm a glare. "_Now_ can I break down the door?" he snapped.

"I wouldn't recommend that."

Everyone froze for a second and looked up, tensing. Mystique was sitting rather primly on one of the arches above the doorway, smiling back down at them, as though she were watching an amusing play.

"Your young friend is in a very important meeting right now," she declared simply. "Perhaps the most important meeting of his life." And with that, she turned and ran over the roof, prompting a snarl from Wolverine as he chased after her across the grounds, Ashton and Tiras right behind him.

"Logan, wait!" Storm cried, before groaning in frustration and turning to Rogue and Chase. "Rogue, Scarlette, retrieve Parasite and Ultrasound from Wolverine and Mystique, if you can. The rest of you, we need to find some way inside. Shadowcat, how many of us do you think you can phase at once?"

* * *

><p>"Someone who can help you."<p>

The tears had stopped flowing, but Arial felt nonetheless embarrassed for having streaked his face with them. This man had a presence like some sort of prophet or something, because even though he made the younger mutant's senses buzz with alarm, Arial simply couldn't look away from him, suspecting he was almost enraptured.

"Don't listen to him, Arial!" Kurt's voice seemed distant and weird, like white noise. "He's lying to you!"

Something smacked Kurt in the face, silencing him, but Arial didn't turn to look. None of the other boys seemed too keen on breaking the spell this newcomer had cast, and really, none of them mattered at the moment anyway.

"Professor Xavier has already tried to help me." Arial said testily.

"But has he _really_ helped you?" the older mutant challenged. "Has he taught you how to harness your power, how to use it by whim alone, how to embrace your mutant side?"  
>Arial opened his mouth to respond, then shut it, at a loss for words.<p>

"He hasn't, has he?"

He shook his head, the tears starting to well back up in his eyes as he hugged his arms, his shoulder tentacles curling tightly against his back.

"Xavier has always meant well, but he has a single flaw in his dream: he longs for peace between humans and mutants." the man spoke in a voice that drowned all other sounds as he began to step forward. "We had every intention of creating a school together for mutantkind, but then I learned of Xavier's blind hopes. I tried to make him realize the harsh reality of the situation; humankind shall always oppress their superiors. But he refuses to listen to such wisdom."

Arial glanced up, caught up in the story, and the man's blazing eyes turned on him.

"He wants you to pass as human," the man spat in a poisonous tone, "All of you. He is not teaching you to use your powers as you were meant to. He wants you to control them, so you can suppress them. So you blend in among an inferior species. He even goes so far as to give your classmates with more obvious mutations a means to disguise their uniqueness, does he not?"

At this, Arial nodded, unsure what else to say, and the man closed the distance between them, placing a sympathetic hand on Arial's shoulder, careful not to irritate the base of the tentacle there.

"You and I are both victims of a higher, tyrannical power, dear boy. My sense of compassion reaches out to you. Come with me, and I can show you just how strong you really are."

He opened his hand then, offering up the butterfly razor, and Arial's eyes slipped to the blade and back up again, his mind racing.

* * *

><p>Kurt had just managed to right himself from the sudden attack with the communion and offering trays when a disembodied hand tapped him on the shoulder. He almost cried out in horror until he realized it was just Kitty.<p>

No, not just Kitty. She phased through the wall, pulling several of the others along behind her, and no sooner had they gotten their bearings than they all looked up to see the nightmare scene before them.

"Kurt, what's happened?" Kitty cried.

But he had no words to with which to tell her. He could only watch, as she and all the others did, transfixed, and it wasn't until Arial began to glance down at his razor that the spell over them all seemed to break.

"Arial, don't listen to him!"

Several of them yelled at once, their voices mingling together in the warning, and the blonde mane of curls turned, Arial's face turning thunderous as his blue eyes narrowed in unbridled rage.

"Arial, you're part of our family!" Evan pleaded, "You're our friend!"

"Arial," Kurt tried desperately, just one last time, "We care about you, all of us."

There had been a flicker of indecision in those azure eyes when they had rested on Spyke, but the fury of a tempest replaced it quickly as Arial rested a death glare on the blue mutant, and in that horrible moment, they knew what had happened.

"_Nein_," he muttered, shaking his head as he accepted the razor. "_Ich will und kann nicht mehr_."

"'I cannot and don't want to, anymore.'" Kurt translated without thinking.

Triumph radiated from Magneto's smile as he placed a paternal hand on Arial's shoulders.

"Come, my young friend, we have places to be."

The water which had fallen to the floor after Arial's display of his powers rose again as his fury grew, and the X-Men could only watch in dismay as it began to spin around, forming a ring. Magneto whispered something to Arial, and the ring of water crashed around them, building into a cyclone that slammed into the roof of the church, whipping the air around them into a frenzy. Debris began to fall, and Storm snapped out of her shock, throwing her hands into the air and pulling a wall of wind about her students to protect them.

And then, quite suddenly, everything fell silent, and they were left standing around in an empty church.

The water cyclone had vanished, and Arial and Magneto with it.


	10. Chapter 10: The End?

Chapter 10: The End…?

There were no words that could do justice the expression on Professor Xavier's face once the young X-Men had returned home, numb with shock and soaking wet from their encounter. For several long, agonizing minutes, no one said anything. The professor steepled his fingers and shut his eyes with a frown, deep in thought. Yarin had turned away, desperately brushing tears from his eyes and trying to make himself inconspicuous. Petrov sagged in his chair, staring at nothing in his horror. The others could only look at the floor, unable to speak, still trying to process what had happened to them.

"This is all my fault." Kurt finally blurted out. Everyone turned to him, and the professor's face softened in pity.

"Kurt, assigning blame—"

"No, this _is_ my fault!" he insisted, "If I had been more sensitive to Arial, none of this would have happened."

"Maybe," Jean said, placing a kind hand on the younger mutant's shoulder, "But we don't have any guarantee of that."

"Jean is right," Professor Xavier declared, "Even had you been more considerate of Arial's feelings, Magneto still might have tried to manipulate him."

Abruptly Logan let out a loud, frustrated growl and began cracking his knuckles, making several of the youngest mutants present jump. "Magneto's going to poison the kid's mind, Chuck." he snarled, not meeting anyone's gaze.

"And the worst part is, it's going to be too easy for him to do that." Evan muttered bitterly. Ashton glanced at him, opening his mouth as if to say something, only to shut it again, eye shining with tears he refused to shed.

"What do we do now, Professor?" Ororo asked, redirecting everyone's attention. Xavier sighed wearily, suddenly looking much older than he was.

"We wait," he answered, "And we hope. Given some time, persistence, and patience, perhaps we can help Arial. It certainly won't be easy, but we should never stop trying. But until then, hope is all that is left to us."

* * *

><p>Somewhere in Dresden, Germany, away from the prying eyes of the ignorant public, there were several screens lit up, replaying scenes captured by many cameras.<p>

One of the screens displayed a video clip stolen from the security footage of Bayville Aquarium, looping its feed on an angle above an octopus tank. Over and over, the screen showed the water in the tank beginning to bevel and rise to one side, like liquid being poured from a drinking glass, all the octopi moving, caught up in the impossible flow of the water.

The others displayed footage of a young, cherubic-faced teenage boy, his appearance the perfect example of the "Aryan race." Some of these were liberated from the security footage of Bayville high school; others had been filmed by the equipment of the viewer.

He stood now, eyes transfixed on the bottom center screen, watching the young mutant call up the water around him into a cyclone, his angelic face the portrait of fury.

The man viewing these feeds was tall, whipcord-thin, with gaunt features and cheeks that had sunken in. His greasy dark hair was long and ragged from years of neglect, and his eyes were glassy in a very mad way. His thin, bloodless lips turned up in a small smile.

"Marvelous." he murmured, "Simply extraordinary."

"I'm sorry if I seem ignorant, sir," his young laboratory assistant spoke up from behind him, "But what exactly is extraordinary?"

"Specimen number four's development," came the patient response, "His mutation has advanced far beyond vhat I had originally anticipated, _und_ if the data readout is accurate, then this vill only continue. Truly extraordinary."

He didn't turn around, but he could sense the younger man's movements as he stared from the scientist to the screens and back again.

"Sir, this has been bothering me for some time, but…" A hesitation, followed by the sound of his loud steps on the tile floor, the pitiful force of a weak, wide-eyed stare as he drew close. "Isn't that your _son_?"

The scientist only smiled a little wider.

"He is, isn't he?" the assistant gulped, recoiling in horror. "And you treat him like some lab rat! How could you do that to your own son?"

Edmund Lavig turned slightly, the mad gleam in his eye growing.

"After his mother vas a failure, it vas easy."

The younger man's jaw dropped as he started to inch away.

"I _did_ varn you you vould not like vorking for me."

" 'Not like?'" the assistant gave a dry, mirthless barking laugh. "Is that supposed to be a joke?"

The question went ignored and Edmund returned his gaze to the screens before him.

"Well you can _forget it_, Doctor Lavig!" the assistant turned and headed for the door. "I refuse to work for someone as deranged and disgusting as you!"

Edmund smiled a little wider, reaching somewhere deep within the core of his being, feeling the presence of every shadow in the room.

"Ah, yes. About that. Turns out that I no longer have need of you anyvay."

The assistant, closing his hand around the door handle, hesitated a second too long. Something about the lighting in the room shifted, and the shadow on the door _moved_. It rose, almost like a living solid object rather than just shifting like a proper trick of the light. His eyes widened as he watched the shadow—_his_ shadow, he realized—draw in on itself tightly. It moved slowly at first, but once it had compacted, the shadow suddenly exploded into a frenzied growth, spikes jutting out from its creeping, black, vine-like form as it launched itself onto his arm. He let out a yelp of pain as the thorns bit deep, and made the mistake of attempting to pry them off.

Edmund shut his eyes, and released the restraints on the shadow-thorns, letting their growth underneath the younger man explode into man-sized spikes.

The sound was a wonderfully discordant travesty of song, the quieter squelching of pierced flesh mixing strangely with the high-pitched screams of agony.

"Let us consider your contract terminated." Edmund said cheerfully, not even turning to face the dying man as his screaming became a wet, choking gurgle. The spikes grew again, smaller thorns bursting from them with the sound of unsheathing metal, and a small shower of blood spattered the back of the scientist's once-pristine lab coat. He smiled just a little wider as he opened his eyes, staring at Arial's furious face in the bottom center screen.

"Yes, you truly are extraordinary, my son."

His smile did not lessen at all, not even as his cold gaze slipped to the armored, cloaked figure standing with Arial, and he folded his arms as he released his shadow-thorns, the mutilated body falling to the floor with a damp thud.

"This is only the beginning." he promised.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: AND THAT IS THE END.**

**No, not really. I'm just kidding! As if I'd just stop after THAT.**** This is the end of "Tempest Fury," yes, but the story continues in "Hurricane Warning." Yes, I'm uploading it as you read this line, so don't freak out. R&R please.**


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